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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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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: wind · racket · toast · craft · pound · wound · land · clip

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. wound — an injury
  5. clip — for paper
  6. wind — moving air
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. toast — bread
  11. wind — moving air
  12. land — to come down
  13. craft — a skill
  14. clip — to cut
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. land — a country
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. clip — a video
  22. pound — a weight
  23. land — ground
  24. craft — boats

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