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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 120 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: content · pound · bat · kid · bound · last · leaves · nail

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. content — happy
  3. bound — certain
  4. last — finally
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. kid — child
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bound — obliged
  9. content — the amount
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. last — to go on
  14. bat — the animal
  15. last — final
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. kid — to tease
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. nail — for a hammer

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