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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: wind · wake · sharp · drill · cap · game · plane · pound

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. drill — a practice
  3. game — wild animals
  4. drill — the tool
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. cap — of ice
  7. pound — a weight
  8. cap — a lid
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. plane — a tool
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. sharp — clever
  15. game — a match
  16. wake — a trail
  17. drill — army training
  18. wind — moving air
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. cap — a hat
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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