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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 116 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: spring · spell · wound · capital · tube · ruler · pitch · pound

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. spring — the season
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pound — a weight
  7. wound — an injury
  8. capital — money
  9. spring — of water
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. capital — a city
  13. tube — a container
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. pitch — completely
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. spell — a short time
  21. spell — letters
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. spell — magic
  24. ruler — a monarch

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