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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: pit · fan · band · hand · bound · pound · net · track

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. track — to keep track
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. pound — a weight
  5. bound — obliged
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. pit — in a race
  9. bound — certain
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. net — in sport
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. pit — a hole
  15. net — after costs
  16. track — a path
  17. bound — tied together
  18. track — a song
  19. hand — help
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. hand — in cards
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. band — a music group
  24. net — for catching

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