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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: shower · nail · pound · roll · racket · last · stand · wave

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. last — finally
  6. last — final
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. shower — to wash
  9. stand — to bear
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. last — to go on
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. shower — rain
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. roll — a list
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. roll — a cake
  24. racket — for tennis

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