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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: pound · bark · temple · wave · kick · prune · bore · land

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. prune — to trim
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kick — in football
  9. land — to come down
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. land — ground
  16. land — a country
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. bore — to tire
  22. bore — to drill
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. bark — to shout

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