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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: kid · drill · jam · wave · pound · rash · mouse · branch

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. kid — to tease
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. drill — army training
  9. branch — a division
  10. drill — the tool
  11. pound — a weight
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. drill — a practice
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. kid — child
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. rash — a series
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. jam — in traffic

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