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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: bore · spring · chair · pound · wave · game · bowl · wound

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. spring — the season
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. spring — of water
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pound — a weight
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. chair — a leader
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. game — a match
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. spring — a coil
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bore — to drill

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