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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: wound · pound · mug · fork · stem · date · object · rock

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rock — music
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. object — a thing
  6. mug — a cup
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. stem — to come from
  9. object — to protest
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. pound — a weight
  12. date — the fruit
  13. wound — an injury
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. mug — to rob
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. mug — a face
  18. fork — in a road
  19. rock — a stone
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. object — an aim

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