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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. bound — tied together
  3. bound — certain
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. face — part of the head
  6. root — the cause
  7. root — of a word
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. root — of a plant
  10. face — to point toward
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spell — letters
  15. bound — obliged
  16. cold — not warm
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rush — hurry
  19. pound — a weight
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cold — an illness
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. face — to confront
  24. cold — the Cold War

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