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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: charge · bark · tear · pound · staff · land · date · spring

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. pound — a weight
  3. charge — a price
  4. bark — to shout
  5. date — the fruit
  6. tear — from crying
  7. staff — employees
  8. charge — in control
  9. staff — employees
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. staff — a stick
  14. charge — electricity
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — a country
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. spring — the season
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. spring — of water
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. spring — a coil

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