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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: bark · lean · pound · saw · band · racket · pitch · season

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. saw — the tool
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a ring
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. season — of the year
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — to shout
  11. lean — thin
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. lean — to bend
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. band — a music group
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. season — in sport
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. saw — the tool
  22. pitch — completely
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. season — to add flavour

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