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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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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: rock · stick · bark · swing · trunk · club · cap · cold

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. swing — music
  5. bark — to shout
  6. club — for golf
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. swing — in golf
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. club — for dancing
  12. swing — to play on
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. club — a group
  16. cap — a hat
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cap — of ice
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. rock — music
  23. cold — not warm
  24. rock — a stone

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