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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: wound · scale · degree · bear · root · lie · fine · pound

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. scale — size or range
  3. fine — high quality
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. degree — from a university
  6. scale — in music
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bear — the animal
  9. lie — to recline
  10. bear — the animal
  11. root — of a word
  12. degree — an amount
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — a weight
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. degree — temperature
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. root — of a plant
  21. root — the cause
  22. wound — an injury
  23. fine — all right
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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