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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: kick · object · rest · degree · dip · pound · band · bark

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. bark — to shout
  6. degree — an amount
  7. rest — what's left
  8. degree — from a university
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. band — a music group
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. object — an aim
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. rest — a break
  16. degree — temperature
  17. object — to protest
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. object — a thing
  21. rest — what's left
  22. kick — in football
  23. dip — to sink
  24. dip — a sauce

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