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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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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: pound · spring · mouse · saw · kid · last · root · stand

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. last — final
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. stand — to bear
  5. kid — child
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. saw — the tool
  9. last — finally
  10. spring — the season
  11. root — of a word
  12. kid — to tease
  13. root — of a plant
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. pound — a weight
  17. last — to go on
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — a coil
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. root — the cause
  24. saw — the tool

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