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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: pound · bear · bark · pop · dip · shower · wind · pitcher

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. pop — soda
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bark — to shout
  7. pop — to visit
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pop — music
  12. pound — a weight
  13. bear — the animal
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bear — the animal
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. dip — to sink

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