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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: wound · rush · pop · kid · spell · stock · pound · bark

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. spell — letters
  7. kid — child
  8. pop — soda
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. stock — shares
  11. spell — a short time
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rush — hurry
  14. bark — to shout
  15. pop — music
  16. spell — magic
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. kid — to tease
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stock — goods
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pop — to visit

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