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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. march — music
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. root — of a word
  7. chest — of your body
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. root — the cause
  10. root — of a plant
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. file — a document
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. chest — of your body
  16. dip — to sink
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. wind — moving air
  19. file — a tool
  20. wind — moving air
  21. file — a line of people
  22. chest — a box
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wind — to turn a key

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