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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 · snap · rest · plane · band · rock · game

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. game — a match
  3. rush — hurry
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — a weight
  7. snap — to click
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rest — what's left
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. plane — a tool
  12. rock — a stone
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. rock — music
  16. game — wild animals
  17. rest — what's left
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. rest — a break
  21. band — a music group
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. band — a ring

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