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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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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: pop · cabinet · land · pitch · pound · band

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. band — a music group
  3. pitch — completely
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. land — a country
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pop — soda
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. land — ground
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a ring
  13. pound — a weight
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. land — to come down
  17. pop — music
  18. pound — to hit hard

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