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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: foot · patient · content · fork · march · kick · pound · bark

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. march — the month
  5. bark — to shout
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fork — in a road
  8. march — music
  9. kick — in football
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. march — the month
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. pound — a weight
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. content — happy
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. content — the amount
  24. foot — part of the body

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