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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: shower · swing · pound · club · sharp · bass · drill · pop

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. club — a group
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pop — to visit
  5. bass — the fish
  6. swing — in golf
  7. club — for golf
  8. sharp — clever
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. bass — low music
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. pop — soda
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — music
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. shower — to wash
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — army training
  20. shower — rain
  21. club — for dancing
  22. drill — a practice
  23. pop — music
  24. bass — the instrument

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