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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: row · bear · pound · temple · bark · swing · last · capital

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. row — to paddle
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. last — to go on
  5. bark — to shout
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — a city
  9. swing — music
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. swing — in golf
  15. row — a line
  16. last — finally
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. swing — to play on
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. last — final
  22. capital — money
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — the animal

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