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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. mate — a friend
  3. net — for catching
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. mate — a partner
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. net — in sport
  9. race — a contest
  10. net — after costs
  11. race — humankind
  12. mate — to breed
  13. kid — child
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. kid — to tease
  17. race — the arms race
  18. pound — a weight

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