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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 · board · scale · wake · bear · game · fan · shower

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. shower — to wash
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. game — a match
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. scale — size or range
  9. board — a committee
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. scale — in music
  13. wake — a trail
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bear — the animal
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. shower — rain
  22. pound — a weight
  23. game — wild animals
  24. board — to get on

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