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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: file · wound · wake · degree · pound · foot · rush · swing

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. file — a tool
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. swing — to play on
  8. file — a line of people
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. wake — a trail
  12. swing — music
  13. degree — temperature
  14. rush — hurry
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. swing — in golf
  17. foot — a measure
  18. file — a document
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. degree — an amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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