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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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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: pound · rush · ball · saw · dip · spring · wind · spell

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. saw — the tool
  3. ball — a great time
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. spring — of water
  6. spell — letters
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — the season
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. ball — a dance
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. saw — the tool
  14. spell — magic
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. rush — hurry
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. pound — a weight
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. dip — to sink

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