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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. key — the most important part
  3. cold — not warm
  4. tube — a container
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. march — music
  9. land — to come down
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. key — in music
  12. march — the month
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. march — the month
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. rush — hurry
  17. land — a country
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. cold — an illness
  20. tube — the underground
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. key — for a lock
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. land — ground

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