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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: bark · bound · press · plane · cold · pound · scale · bear

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bound — tied together
  3. pound — a weight
  4. bound — obliged
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. scale — in music
  8. bound — certain
  9. cold — an illness
  10. plane — a tool
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bear — the animal
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. press — a publisher
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. press — to push
  19. scale — size or range
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. cold — not warm
  24. press — newspapers

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