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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. plane — a tool
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — final
  6. swing — in golf
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. track — a song
  10. track — a path
  11. swing — to play on
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. cell — in biology
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. bat — the animal
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. last — finally
  21. track — to keep track
  22. swing — music
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. plane — an aircraft

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