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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. club — a group
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a ring
  7. rush — hurry
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. bound — obliged
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. pound — a weight
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — for golf
  20. bound — tied together
  21. bark — to shout
  22. row — a line
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. bound — certain

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