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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: wind · dip · land · hand · stem · present · pound · deal

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. land — a country
  5. present — the time now
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pound — a weight
  8. present — a gift
  9. wind — moving air
  10. present — there
  11. wind — moving air
  12. hand — help
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. land — to come down
  19. dip — to sink
  20. land — ground
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. deal — a big deal

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