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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. last — final
  4. last — to go on
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. pound — a weight
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. kick — in football
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. rock — music
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. last — finally
  19. rock — a stone
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. sharp — clever
  22. plane — a tool
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. march — the month

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