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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pound · patient · bark · kick · coach · tube · bound · field

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. field — farmland
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. kick — in football
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. field — a subject
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tube — a container
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. field — for sport
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. bound — certain
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bound — obliged
  24. pound — a weight

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