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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
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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: trunk · net · kid · board · object · land · pound · date

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. land — a country
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. land — to come down
  8. kid — child
  9. board — a committee
  10. land — ground
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. object — a thing
  13. net — after costs
  14. board — to get on
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. net — for catching
  17. object — to protest
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. pound — a weight
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. date — the fruit
  22. kid — to tease
  23. net — in sport
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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