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

Word bank: pound · cold · ground · march · ruler · racket

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. march — the month
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. march — the month
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. ground — crushed
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. march — music
  14. ground — the earth
  15. ground — a position
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. pound — a weight

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