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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. fork — in a road
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. chip — for betting
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. chip — to eat
  8. shower — to wash
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. press — to push
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. wound — an injury
  14. shower — rain
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. net — after costs
  18. pound — a weight
  19. wound — an injury
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. net — for catching
  22. press — newspapers
  23. net — in sport
  24. press — a publisher

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