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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · pound · season · wind · hand · chair · wound · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — in cards
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. hand — help
  7. pound — a weight
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. degree — an amount
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. wound — an injury
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — in sport
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. chair — a leader

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