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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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. land — ground
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. track — a path
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. can — to be able to
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. track — a song
  14. land — a country
  15. can — a tin
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. can — a tin
  18. cell — a phone
  19. track — to keep track
  20. land — to come down
  21. cell — in biology
  22. bat — the animal
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. cell — in a prison

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