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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. season — of the year
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. season — in sport
  5. lean — to bend
  6. pound — a weight
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. hand — help
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. lean — thin
  12. tube — the underground
  13. bat — the animal
  14. charge — electricity
  15. hand — in cards
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. bass — low music
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. charge — a price
  20. tube — a container
  21. bass — the fish
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. charge — in control
  24. bat — in an idiom

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