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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: bore · swing · plane · rash · bound · mine · bark · kick

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. rash — hasty
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. bore — to drill
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. kick — in football
  10. bark — to shout
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. mine — for digging
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bound — tied together
  16. rash — a series
  17. plane — a tool
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. bound — certain
  20. swing — music
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bound — obliged

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