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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: mark · mine · pound · bore · wave · cold · pop · nail

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pop — music
  4. pop — to visit
  5. bore — to tire
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mark — a grade
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. mark — a trace
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bore — to drill
  15. pound — a weight
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pop — soda
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cold — not warm
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. cold — an illness

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