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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 120 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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. band — a music group
  9. snap — to click
  10. pop — soda
  11. pop — music
  12. pound — a weight
  13. craft — a skill
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bat — the animal
  16. stem — to come from
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. band — a ring
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. craft — boats
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. pound — for dogs

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