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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. spell — letters
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bank — for money
  5. rash — hasty
  6. spell — a short time
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bank — for money
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. bank — of a river
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. rash — a series
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — of a word
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. spell — magic
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — to cut
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. pound — a weight
  24. root — the cause

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