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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · hide · key · wound · land · bark · bat · band

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. band — a music group
  5. key — in music
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. band — a ring
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. key — for a lock
  10. court — of a king
  11. bat — the animal
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. court — for sport
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. wound — an injury
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. land — ground
  18. key — the most important part
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. land — a country
  21. court — of law
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. land — to come down
  24. bark — of a tree

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