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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 116 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: lie · ground · pound · band · bark · swing · bulb · present

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a ring
  3. present — the time now
  4. swing — music
  5. ground — a position
  6. ground — crushed
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bulb — for light
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. present — a gift
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bulb — for light
  15. swing — in golf
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. band — a music group
  18. bark — to shout
  19. ground — the earth
  20. swing — to play on
  21. present — there
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. pound — for dogs

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