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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 116 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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. bear — the animal
  3. pound — a weight
  4. band — a ring
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. root — of a word
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. capital — a city
  10. tear — to rip
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bear — the animal
  14. root — the cause
  15. band — a music group
  16. tear — from crying
  17. root — of a plant
  18. deal — to handle
  19. tear — from crying
  20. capital — money
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. deal — a big deal

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