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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. game — a match
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. perch — the fish
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. game — wild animals
  8. squash — to crush
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. squash — the sport
  12. tear — from crying
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. kick — in football
  18. tear — to rip
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pound — a weight

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