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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: staff · content · drill · pound · date · club · pop · fall

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. staff — employees
  3. date — the fruit
  4. pound — a weight
  5. club — a group
  6. fall — to drop
  7. staff — a stick
  8. pop — to visit
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. content — happy
  11. fall — to drop
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — army training
  14. pop — soda
  15. club — for golf
  16. drill — a practice
  17. staff — employees
  18. content — the amount
  19. fall — the season
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. club — for dancing
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. date — on the calendar

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