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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. drill — the tool
  6. clip — to cut
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — a video
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. shower — rain
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. drill — a practice
  15. pound — a weight
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. lie — to recline
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. shower — to wash
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. wake — a trail
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. drill — army training
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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