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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. cap — a hat
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. scale — in music
  10. scale — size or range
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — to shout
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. wake — a trail
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. cap — of ice
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. cap — a lid
  24. kid — to tease

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