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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 walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. file — a line of people
  3. band — a ring
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. plane — a tool
  9. file — a document
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. vault — a safe
  13. kid — child
  14. net — after costs
  15. file — a tool
  16. perch — the fish
  17. band — a music group
  18. pound — a weight
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. kid — to tease

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