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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pound · club · tear · key · wave · fall

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. fall — to drop
  3. tear — from crying
  4. club — for golf
  5. key — the most important part
  6. fall — to drop
  7. key — for a lock
  8. club — for dancing
  9. tear — to rip
  10. fall — the season
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. club — a group
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. wave — with your hand

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