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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. fall — the season
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bear — the animal
  11. capital — a city
  12. wake — a trail
  13. spring — the season
  14. bear — the animal
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — the tool
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. spring — a coil
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. capital — money
  24. spring — of water

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