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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: bound · pound · mate · bowl · swing · stem · chest · fall

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. fall — to drop
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pound — a weight
  6. swing — to play on
  7. stem — to come from
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bound — certain
  12. chest — a box
  13. fall — the season
  14. chest — of your body
  15. mate — a partner
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bound — obliged
  18. mate — a friend
  19. swing — music
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. swing — in golf
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. mate — to breed
  24. chest — of your body

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