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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. bore — to drill
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. prune — to trim
  7. kid — to tease
  8. pound — a weight
  9. game — wild animals
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cap — of ice
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. prune — to trim
  18. kid — child
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. game — a match
  21. bore — to tire
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. cap — a lid

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