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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 116 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. spring — a coil
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. rush — hurry
  5. net — for catching
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. spring — the season
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. spring — of water
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. pound — a weight
  13. march — music
  14. wax — to grow
  15. net — in sport
  16. net — after costs
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. can — to be able to
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. march — the month
  22. bark — to shout
  23. march — the month
  24. can — a tin

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