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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. pound — a weight
  3. bat — the animal
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. band — a music group
  9. club — a group
  10. bark — to shout
  11. land — a country
  12. mug — a face
  13. club — for golf
  14. stock — goods
  15. mug — to rob
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. band — a ring
  18. stock — shares
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. land — to come down
  22. club — for dancing
  23. mug — a cup
  24. bat — for baseball

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