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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: can · staff · bark · cold · game · club · firm · stem

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cold — not warm
  4. staff — employees
  5. firm — steady
  6. staff — employees
  7. firm — decided
  8. cold — an illness
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. can — to be able to
  12. club — a group
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stem — to come from
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. club — for dancing
  17. can — a tin
  18. bark — to shout
  19. game — a match
  20. firm — a company
  21. can — a tin
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. staff — a stick

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