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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: arm · present · court · bark · pound · bear · branch · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. present — a gift
  3. toast — bread
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bear — the animal
  6. court — for sport
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. branch — a division
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bear — the animal
  15. present — the time now
  16. court — of a king
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. pound — a weight
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. court — of law
  22. bark — to shout
  23. present — there
  24. branch — of a tree

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