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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — ground
  5. fork — in a road
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. wound — an injury
  8. net — for catching
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. land — a country
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. last — final
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. net — after costs
  19. wake — a trail
  20. last — to go on
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. last — finally
  24. net — in sport

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