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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: pitch · object · bank · bark · shower · sharp · pitcher · staff

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. staff — employees
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — clever
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bark — to shout
  9. staff — a stick
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. shower — rain
  13. pitch — completely
  14. staff — employees
  15. bank — for money
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bank — for money
  19. shower — to wash
  20. object — to protest
  21. bank — of a river
  22. object — an aim
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. object — a thing

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