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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bound — tied together
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. clip — for paper
  8. drill — the tool
  9. bound — obliged
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. spell — magic
  12. clip — a video
  13. drill — a practice
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — a subject
  16. pound — a weight
  17. spell — a short time
  18. field — farmland
  19. clip — to cut
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. bound — certain
  23. drill — army training
  24. tear — to rip

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