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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 · spell · pitch · court · cell · season · fork · nail

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. court — of law
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. spell — magic
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. spell — a short time
  11. pitch — completely
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. season — of the year
  14. cell — in biology
  15. spell — letters
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. court — of a king
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. cell — a phone
  20. bark — to shout
  21. fork — in a road
  22. court — for sport
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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