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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. drill — a practice
  3. season — of the year
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. land — to come down
  6. shower — rain
  7. drill — army training
  8. pound — a weight
  9. kid — to tease
  10. plane — a tool
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. season — in sport
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. drill — the tool
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. land — a country
  17. kid — child
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. land — ground
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. shower — to wash

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