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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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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 · face · pit · bowl · tear · pop · rock · field

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pop — to visit
  3. rock — music
  4. rock — a stone
  5. face — to point toward
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. face — part of the head
  8. field — for sport
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pop — music
  13. field — farmland
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. face — to confront
  16. pit — a hole
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pop — soda
  22. field — a subject
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. tear — to rip

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