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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 · ground · bat · face · kick · bark · trunk · tube

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bark — to shout
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. tube — a container
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. face — to confront
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. tube — the underground
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. kick — in football
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. face — to point toward

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