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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. shower — to wash
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. field — farmland
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. mark — a trace
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. pound — a weight
  9. craft — a skill
  10. field — a subject
  11. craft — boats
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. wind — moving air
  15. shower — rain
  16. march — the month
  17. board — a committee
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. mark — a grade
  20. wind — moving air
  21. board — to get on
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. field — for sport

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