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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pop — to visit
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cap — a hat
  7. charge — electricity
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. key — the most important part
  11. cap — a lid
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pop — soda
  14. charge — a price
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bat — the animal
  17. key — for a lock
  18. charge — in control
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. key — in music
  23. pop — music
  24. cap — of ice

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