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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: mine · kid · object · bass · spell · mate · cell · pound

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pound — a weight
  5. mine — for digging
  6. spell — a short time
  7. spell — magic
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. bass — the fish
  10. mate — to breed
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. cell — in biology
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. spell — letters
  16. bass — low music
  17. kid — child
  18. object — to protest
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. object — a thing
  21. mate — a partner
  22. object — an aim
  23. kid — to tease
  24. mate — a friend

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