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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
468
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: bowl · march · bark · ground · kick · plane · date · foot

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. march — music
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. ground — crushed
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. bark — to shout
  17. date — the fruit
  18. kick — in football
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. ground — a position
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. plane — a tool
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. ground — the earth

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