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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: spring · cell · mug · ball · drill · fan · pound · scale

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. mug — a face
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. ball — a great time
  6. mug — a cup
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. drill — army training
  10. spring — a coil
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. ball — a dance
  13. pound — a weight
  14. drill — a practice
  15. scale — in music
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. spring — the season
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in biology
  21. mug — to rob
  22. spring — of water
  23. drill — the tool
  24. scale — size or range

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