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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: saw · ground · fall · sharp · staff · pound · bear · land

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — to come down
  3. pound — a weight
  4. fall — to drop
  5. staff — a stick
  6. saw — the tool
  7. fall — the season
  8. bear — the animal
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. staff — employees
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — a position
  17. sharp — clever
  18. land — a country
  19. ground — crushed
  20. staff — employees
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. bear — the animal
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. saw — the tool

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