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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: pound · file · land · swing · track · wake · rash · stock

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. land — ground
  3. stock — goods
  4. swing — music
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. land — a country
  7. rash — a series
  8. wake — a trail
  9. track — to keep track
  10. swing — in golf
  11. file — a line of people
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. file — a document
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. swing — to play on
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. track — a song
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. land — to come down
  21. track — a path
  22. rash — hasty
  23. stock — shares
  24. pound — a weight

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