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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. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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. game — a match
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — wild animals
  12. bass — the fish
  13. degree — temperature
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. degree — from a university
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. branch — a division
  19. kick — in football
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bass — low music
  24. degree — an amount

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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