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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. cue — for pool
  4. dip — to sink
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. pound — a weight
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. tear — from crying
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. cue — a hint
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. mine — for digging
  14. cue — a signal
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. sharp — clever
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. deal — to handle
  23. tear — to rip
  24. pound — for dogs

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