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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 120 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 · snap · prune · mine · rest · land · fork · bound

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. land — to come down
  4. bound — tied together
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. rest — what's left
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. land — a country
  12. rest — a break
  13. pound — a weight
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bound — obliged
  17. fork — in a road
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. land — ground
  20. mine — for digging
  21. rest — what's left
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. snap — to click
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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