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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: trunk · tube · file · pitch · straw · fork · row · bark

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. row — to paddle
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. tube — the underground
  7. file — a document
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. row — a line
  19. pitch — completely
  20. tube — a container
  21. bark — to shout
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. fork — in a road

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