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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. spring — the season
  3. march — the month
  4. net — for catching
  5. drill — the tool
  6. spring — of water
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. drill — a practice
  10. pound — a weight
  11. root — of a plant
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. root — the cause
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. march — music
  16. net — after costs
  17. drill — army training
  18. march — the month
  19. spring — a coil
  20. root — of a word
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — a container
  24. net — in sport

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