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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. hand — help
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pound — a weight
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. hand — in cards
  10. lie — to recline
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. court — of law
  13. court — for sport
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. court — of a king
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. lie — an untruth

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