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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. lean — to bend
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. scale — size or range
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. bass — low music
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. dip — to sink
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. prune — to trim
  15. scale — in music
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bass — the fish
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. pound — a weight
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bat — the animal
  24. lean — thin

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