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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. swing — music
  3. drill — army training
  4. bass — the fish
  5. chest — a box
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. tube — the underground
  8. drill — the tool
  9. tube — a container
  10. swing — in golf
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. pound — a weight
  14. swing — to play on
  15. chest — of your body
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bass — low music
  20. drill — a practice
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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