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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. clip — for paper
  3. drill — the tool
  4. fall — to drop
  5. pop — soda
  6. fall — the season
  7. pound — a weight
  8. staff — a stick
  9. mate — a friend
  10. net — after costs
  11. pop — music
  12. drill — a practice
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fall — to drop
  16. staff — employees
  17. net — for catching
  18. net — in sport
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. staff — employees
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. mate — a partner
  23. mate — to breed
  24. drill — army training

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