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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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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 · scale · wind · bore · rest · bowl · stand · hand

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. hand — in cards
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bore — to drill
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. rest — a break
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. stand — to bear
  12. hand — help
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — what's left
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. scale — in music
  18. bore — to tire
  19. pound — a weight
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. scale — size or range
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. bowl — to roll

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