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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 116 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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. pound — a weight
  5. bark — to shout
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. drill — a practice
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. drill — the tool
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. drill — army training
  18. bark — a dog's sound

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