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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: march · staff · saw · pop · ball · wake · ground · pound

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. staff — employees
  4. ground — crushed
  5. ground — the earth
  6. march — music
  7. ball — a dance
  8. pop — soda
  9. saw — the tool
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. saw — the tool
  12. march — the month
  13. pop — to visit
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. pound — a weight
  17. march — the month
  18. ground — a position
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wake — a trail
  21. ball — a great time
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. pop — music
  24. ball — a round shape

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