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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 · row · patient · wound · file · key · mine · chip

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. file — a line of people
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. row — a line
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wound — an injury
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. key — in music
  14. chip — for betting
  15. key — for a lock
  16. chip — to eat
  17. pound — a weight
  18. row — to paddle
  19. file — a document
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. key — the most important part
  22. wound — an injury
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. file — a tool

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