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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: net · bark · snap · plane · prune · temple · face · band

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. face — to point toward
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a music group
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. net — after costs
  11. face — part of the head
  12. prune — to trim
  13. net — for catching
  14. snap — to click
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. plane — a tool
  17. band — a ring
  18. bark — to shout
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. net — in sport
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. prune — to trim
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. face — to confront

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