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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. squash — to crush
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. sharp — clever
  9. rock — a stone
  10. date — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. shower — rain
  13. cell — a phone
  14. rock — music
  15. pound — a weight
  16. tube — a container
  17. shower — to wash
  18. tube — the underground
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. squash — the sport
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. squash — the vegetable

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