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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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468
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: ground · land · swing · bear · foot · march · mine · pound

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. swing — music
  5. swing — in golf
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. pound — a weight
  11. ground — the earth
  12. foot — a measure
  13. land — a country
  14. mine — for digging
  15. swing — to play on
  16. land — to come down
  17. march — the month
  18. bear — the animal
  19. march — the month
  20. bear — the animal
  21. ground — crushed
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. march — music
  24. land — ground

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