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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: spring · pound · root · lean · pit · swing · band · nail

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. spring — of water
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. lean — to bend
  6. pound — a weight
  7. band — a ring
  8. spring — the season
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pit — a hole
  12. swing — to play on
  13. band — a music group
  14. spring — a coil
  15. swing — in golf
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a plant
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. lean — thin
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. swing — music
  24. root — of a word

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