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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bore — to tire
  4. wind — moving air
  5. sharp — clever
  6. kid — to tease
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. rash — hasty
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. kid — child
  15. stand — to bear
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. bore — to drill
  24. rash — a series

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