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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. bound — obliged
  3. mine — for digging
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. pound — a weight
  6. bark — to shout
  7. net — in sport
  8. last — to go on
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — after costs
  15. last — finally
  16. last — final
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. drill — a practice
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bound — tied together
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. bound — certain
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. pound — for dogs

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