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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. drill — a practice
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. bat — the animal
  9. roll — a cake
  10. roll — a list
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. drill — army training
  13. object — to protest
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. drill — the tool
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. object — a thing
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. object — an aim
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. pound — for dogs

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