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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 · spring · scale · pitch · swing · bound · pound · tear

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — completely
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. swing — music
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pound — a weight
  10. tear — to rip
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. spring — a coil
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bound — certain
  15. tear — from crying
  16. spring — the season
  17. bound — obliged
  18. wind — moving air
  19. spring — of water
  20. swing — to play on
  21. tear — from crying
  22. swing — in golf
  23. bound — tied together
  24. scale — in music

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