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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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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: chip · bulb · ground · pound · wind · club · wake · bear

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. bear — the animal
  4. club — a group
  5. pound — a weight
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — the earth
  9. club — for golf
  10. bulb — for light
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. wind — moving air
  13. chip — to eat
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bulb — for light
  17. chip — for betting
  18. wake — a trail
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. club — for dancing
  22. ground — a position
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. bear — the animal

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