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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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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: fine · lash · pound · court · cold · stem · content · bark

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. content — the amount
  4. pound — a weight
  5. content — happy
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. fine — all right
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bark — to shout
  13. court — of law
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. stem — to come from
  16. fine — high quality
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. court — of a king
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — an illness
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. court — for sport

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