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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: bark · wax · fall · ground · date · pound · present · club

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. present — there
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. fall — the season
  5. ground — crushed
  6. club — for dancing
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. club — a group
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. present — a gift
  11. date — the fruit
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — to grow
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. ground — the earth
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. fall — to drop
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. club — for golf
  22. present — the time now
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. ground — a position

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