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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: snap · lean · content · spell · pound · bark · pop · straw

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. spell — magic
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. spell — a short time
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. pop — music
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — happy
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. spell — letters
  16. snap — to click
  17. lean — thin
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. content — the amount
  20. bark — to shout
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pop — soda

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