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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 120 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: mark · face · bark · hand · court · calf · pound · row

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. mark — a trace
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. face — part of the head
  6. hand — in cards
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. mark — a grade
  10. court — for sport
  11. hand — help
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. face — to confront
  14. court — of a king
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. row — to paddle
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. pound — a weight
  20. bark — to shout
  21. court — of law
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. face — to point toward
  24. calf — of the leg

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