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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 116 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: court · bowl · trunk · field · bark · pit · lash · squash

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. pit — a hole
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. field — farmland
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of law
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. squash — to crush
  14. court — of a king
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. field — for sport
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. pit — in a race
  23. bark — to shout
  24. field — a subject

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