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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 116 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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wind — moving air
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. degree — temperature
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. deal — to handle
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. band — a ring
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. object — a thing
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. object — an aim
  20. band — a music group
  21. degree — an amount
  22. object — to protest
  23. degree — from a university
  24. fan — a supporter

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