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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 · fork · ruler · pop · last · club

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. club — for golf
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. pop — to visit
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pound — a weight
  8. last — finally
  9. last — final
  10. club — for dancing
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. last — to go on
  13. pop — soda
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. fork — in a road
  16. club — a group
  17. pop — music
  18. ruler — for measuring

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