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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: mate · wound · content · branch · ball · ground · pound · pass

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  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. mate — to breed
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. content — happy
  6. content — the amount
  7. mate — a partner
  8. branch — a division
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. ground — a position
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. ball — a dance
  13. wound — an injury
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. ball — a great time
  18. pass — a permit
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. ground — crushed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. pound — a weight
  23. ground — the earth
  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