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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 · rest · roll · mouse · hand · capital · game · content

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. roll — a list
  5. rest — a break
  6. capital — money
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. hand — help
  9. game — wild animals
  10. roll — a cake
  11. content — happy
  12. rest — what's left
  13. capital — a city
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. content — the amount
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. game — a match
  19. rest — what's left
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pound — for dogs

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