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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. file — a line of people
  3. lie — to recline
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bound — tied together
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. wound — an injury
  8. season — in sport
  9. land — ground
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. file — a tool
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. pound — a weight
  15. land — a country
  16. scale — size or range
  17. land — to come down
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bound — obliged
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. file — a document
  22. bound — certain
  23. scale — in music
  24. season — of the year

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