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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: staff · pitch · wound · bulb · bark · leaves · cell · lash

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. staff — employees
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cell — in biology
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. pitch — completely
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. staff — a stick
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. bark — to shout
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. staff — employees

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com