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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 · pound · face · coach · key · land · last · bark

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bark — to shout
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. face — to confront
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. land — ground
  12. key — the most important part
  13. land — a country
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pound — a weight
  16. land — to come down
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — to trim
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. face — to point toward
  21. key — in music
  22. key — for a lock
  23. face — part of the head
  24. last — final

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