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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. ground — crushed
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. mine — for digging
  13. ground — a position
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. net — in sport
  19. tear — to rip
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. ground — the earth
  22. tear — from crying
  23. net — after costs
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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