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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: prune · chest · plane · band · spell · scale · bark · kick

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. spell — letters
  3. plane — a tool
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. scale — size or range
  6. prune — to trim
  7. chest — of your body
  8. band — a music group
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. prune — to trim
  12. scale — in music
  13. chest — a box
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bark — to shout
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — a short time
  19. band — a ring
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. kick — in football
  23. chest — of your body
  24. kick — 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