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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pop — music
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. bore — to drill
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. pound — a weight
  9. march — the month
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. pop — to visit
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. bark — to shout
  17. lean — to bend
  18. march — music
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. lean — thin
  24. pop — soda

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