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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. chest — a box
  5. degree — temperature
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wind — moving air
  13. degree — from a university
  14. pitch — completely
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. degree — an amount
  20. chest — of your body
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chest — of your body
  24. nail — for a hammer

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