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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 116 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 · staff · wave · field · pitcher · hand · track · sharp

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  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. pound — to hit hard
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. field — for sport
  6. staff — a stick
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. staff — employees
  11. staff — employees
  12. field — farmland
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. track — a song
  18. track — to keep track
  19. hand — in cards
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. sharp — clever
  22. hand — help
  23. field — a subject
  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