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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  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. season — to add flavour
  3. bound — certain
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. spring — the season
  8. swing — to play on
  9. spring — a coil
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. bound — obliged
  12. swing — music
  13. track — to keep track
  14. swing — in golf
  15. pound — a weight
  16. track — a path
  17. track — a song
  18. bound — tied together
  19. row — a line
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. spring — of water
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  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