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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. fine — all right
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. kid — child
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. kid — to tease
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. land — to come down
  15. land — ground
  16. row — a line
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. rock — a stone
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. rock — music
  22. land — a country
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pound — a weight

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