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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: pound · rest · bark · safe · trunk · tear · game · deal

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. pound — a weight
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. game — wild animals
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. tear — from crying
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. game — a match
  16. bark — to shout
  17. rest — what's left
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. tear — to rip
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. deal — to handle
  22. rest — a break
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. tear — from crying

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