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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 116 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. row — a line
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. rock — a stone
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of a king
  10. row — to paddle
  11. band — a ring
  12. pound — a weight
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pass — a permit
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. rock — music
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. band — a music group
  21. mate — to breed
  22. court — of law
  23. bark — to shout
  24. row — a quarrel

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