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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. wound — an injury
  3. spell — magic
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. ball — a dance
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. ball — a great time
  9. content — happy
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. pound — a weight
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. stem — to come from
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. spell — letters
  21. content — the amount
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. rush — hurry
  24. spell — a short time

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