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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. branch — a division
  4. kid — to tease
  5. rock — music
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. track — to keep track
  9. current — happening now
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. saw — the tool
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. track — a song
  15. rock — a stone
  16. saw — the tool
  17. current — electric
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. current — of water
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. track — a path
  24. bowl — a football final

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