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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: pound · bark · drill · fork · sharp · scale · ground · rush

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. fork — in a road
  7. rush — hurry
  8. scale — in music
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — a position
  14. bark — to shout
  15. pound — a weight
  16. sharp — clever
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. drill — a practice
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. scale — size or range
  23. drill — the tool
  24. rush — a thrill

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