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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: face · bark · pitcher · trunk · leaves · pound · bat · wind

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. wind — moving air
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. bat — the animal
  8. wind — moving air
  9. face — part of the head
  10. face — to confront
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. bark — to shout
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. face — to point toward
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. leaves — lets stay

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