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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 · degree · bear · staff · file · last · craft · drill

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. last — final
  4. pound — a weight
  5. file — a tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. last — finally
  8. drill — the tool
  9. degree — an amount
  10. craft — a skill
  11. staff — a stick
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. last — to go on
  14. drill — a practice
  15. degree — from a university
  16. staff — employees
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bear — the animal
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bear — the animal
  21. craft — boats
  22. file — a document
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. staff — employees

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