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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 120 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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. stand — to bear
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. shower — to wash
  13. rush — hurry
  14. shower — rain
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. branch — a division
  24. coach — a trainer

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