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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pop — music
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. swing — to play on
  5. swing — music
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. pop — soda
  8. track — to keep track
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pound — a weight
  11. season — in sport
  12. track — a path
  13. season — of the year
  14. drill — the tool
  15. drill — a practice
  16. perch — the fish
  17. track — a song
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. swing — in golf
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. drill — army training
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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