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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: bark · row · pound · trunk · stock · pitcher · cell · can

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. row — a line
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pound — a weight
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bark — to shout
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. can — a tin
  12. stock — shares
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. row — to paddle
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. stock — goods
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. can — a tin
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. can — to be able to
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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