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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 120 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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. firm — a company
  8. spell — letters
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — to come from
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. spell — a short time
  13. lean — to bend
  14. firm — decided
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. firm — steady
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. spell — magic
  21. lean — thin
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. plane — a tool
  24. wind — moving air

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