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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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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 · saw · bank · race · pop · chest · kick · wound

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bank — for money
  5. race — humankind
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pop — music
  11. kick — in football
  12. race — a contest
  13. chest — of your body
  14. saw — the tool
  15. race — the arms race
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. pop — soda
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. chest — a box
  20. bank — of a river
  21. pound — a weight
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bank — for money
  24. pop — to visit

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