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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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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: mate · board · bark · jam · lean · ground · pound · cell

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. cell — a phone
  4. mate — a friend
  5. ground — the earth
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. lean — thin
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. ground — a position
  11. bark — to shout
  12. board — a committee
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. mate — to breed
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. pound — a weight
  18. cell — in biology
  19. board — to get on
  20. mate — a partner
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. lean — to bend
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. board — a flat piece

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