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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: bark · pound · cabinet · temple · arm · mine · race · press

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pound — a weight
  11. press — a publisher
  12. race — a contest
  13. bark — to shout
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. press — newspapers
  20. race — humankind
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. mine — for digging
  24. press — to push

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