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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: fork · can · mine · bound · shower · pound

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. bound — obliged
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. shower — rain
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bound — tied together
  10. pound — a weight
  11. fork — in a road
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. can — a tin
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. can — a tin
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — for digging
  18. can — to be able to

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