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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. spell — a short time
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. pound — a weight
  5. swing — in golf
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. spell — letters
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. swing — music
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. mug — to rob
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. swing — to play on
  16. sharp — clever
  17. row — to paddle
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. last — finally
  20. spell — magic
  21. row — a line
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. mug — a face
  24. mug — a cup

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