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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · pound · racket · bark · cell · bulb

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pound — a weight
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bulb — for light
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. kick — in football
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. bark — of a tree

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