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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: bound · rash · tear · bass · lean · wave · row · pound

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. tear — from crying
  3. lean — thin
  4. row — to paddle
  5. tear — from crying
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. tear — to rip
  8. rash — hasty
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. pound — a weight
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bass — low music
  15. row — a line
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. rash — a series
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bound — certain
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. lean — to bend
  24. bound — obliged

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