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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: track · court · object · shower · bore · pound · rest · wind

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. object — an aim
  3. shower — to wash
  4. rest — a break
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. rest — what's left
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rest — what's left
  10. court — of law
  11. wind — moving air
  12. object — a thing
  13. shower — rain
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bore — to drill
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pound — a weight
  19. court — of a king
  20. bore — to tire
  21. track — to keep track
  22. court — for sport
  23. object — to protest
  24. track — a path

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