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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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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: staff · bark · mouse · kid · pound · tear · chair · pitch

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. staff — employees
  8. kid — to tease
  9. pitch — completely
  10. tear — from crying
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — a weight
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kid — child
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. bark — to shout

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