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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. pound — a weight
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. degree — from a university
  7. file — a line of people
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cue — for pool
  10. suit — to fit
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. cue — a signal
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. cue — a hint
  15. degree — an amount
  16. suit — clothes
  17. kick — in football
  18. file — a tool
  19. row — to paddle
  20. row — a line
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. file — a document
  23. wound — an injury
  24. pound — to hit hard

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