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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: season · scale · present · degree · mouse · land · rush · pound

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. season — of the year
  3. rush — hurry
  4. pound — a weight
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. present — the time now
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. present — there
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. degree — an amount
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. present — a gift
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. degree — from a university
  16. season — in sport
  17. scale — size or range
  18. land — to come down
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. land — ground
  21. land — a country
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. degree — temperature
  24. scale — in music

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