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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: straw · drill · pound · bay · track · rest · net · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. drill — army training
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. pop — soda
  7. track — a song
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. track — a path
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. track — to keep track
  13. rest — a break
  14. pound — a weight
  15. drill — a practice
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. rest — what's left
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — for catching
  21. pop — music
  22. rest — what's left
  23. drill — the tool
  24. pound — to hit hard

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