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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. hand — in cards
  4. file — a document
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. toast — bread
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pound — a weight
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — a trail
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. file — a tool
  14. hand — help
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. file — a line of people
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. pound — for dogs

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