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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. rush — hurry
  4. object — to protest
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. cold — an illness
  8. pound — a weight
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. fall — to drop
  11. object — an aim
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. fall — the season
  15. hand — help
  16. fall — to drop
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. object — a thing
  20. lean — to bend
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. lean — thin

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