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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pound — a weight
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. bear — the animal
  6. lean — thin
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. bound — certain
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. file — a document
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. field — farmland
  14. deal — to handle
  15. file — a tool
  16. lean — to bend
  17. bear — the animal
  18. field — a subject
  19. file — a line of people
  20. fork — in a road
  21. bound — obliged
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. field — for sport
  24. bound — tied together

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