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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: ball · hand · stock · sharp · bore · rock · pound · kid

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. hand — help
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. kid — to tease
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. pound — a weight
  7. bore — to tire
  8. stock — shares
  9. rock — music
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. ball — a dance
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. stock — goods
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. bore — to drill
  21. ball — a great time
  22. kid — child
  23. rock — a stone
  24. sharp — clever

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