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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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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: march · foot · court · key · trunk · bark · stem · pound

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. court — for sport
  8. foot — a measure
  9. court — of a king
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pound — a weight
  16. key — in music
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. march — music
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. stem — to come from
  24. court — of law

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