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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 116 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: prune · object · bark · mark · spring · pound · mate · ground

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. object — an aim
  5. ground — crushed
  6. object — to protest
  7. ground — the earth
  8. prune — to trim
  9. object — a thing
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. spring — of water
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bark — to shout
  18. mark — a trace
  19. ground — a position
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mark — a grade
  24. mate — a partner

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