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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. bore — to tire
  4. mark — a grade
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. march — music
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. pound — a weight
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. land — a country
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — an injury
  14. march — the month
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. rush — hurry
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. march — the month
  19. land — ground
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bore — to drill
  22. fork — in a road
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. land — to come down

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