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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. pound — a weight
  3. snap — to click
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. mug — a cup
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — a series
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. mug — a face
  12. ball — a great time
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wound — an injury
  18. mug — to rob
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pound — to hit hard

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