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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: chest · band · bark · date · squash · racket · track · pound

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. chest — of your body
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. band — a music group
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. pound — a weight
  8. squash — to crush
  9. chest — a box
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. track — a path
  14. band — a ring
  15. bark — to shout
  16. squash — the sport
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. date — the fruit
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. track — to keep track
  24. track — a song

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