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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. net — after costs
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. net — in sport
  9. wax — to grow
  10. prune — to trim
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. lie — to recline
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. net — for catching
  20. band — a ring
  21. cell — in biology
  22. prune — to trim
  23. band — a music group
  24. cell — a phone

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