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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. tube — the underground
  5. file — a document
  6. cell — a phone
  7. file — a line of people
  8. hand — in cards
  9. cell — in biology
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. file — a tool
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. tube — a container
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. hand — help
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pound — a weight
  24. fan — to cool the air

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