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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · pound · cell · land · rock · pop · season · scale

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. pound — a weight
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. mate — a friend
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. rock — a stone
  11. mate — to breed
  12. scale — size or range
  13. land — to come down
  14. season — of the year
  15. pop — to visit
  16. scale — in music
  17. mate — a partner
  18. cell — in biology
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. rock — music
  21. season — in sport
  22. land — a country
  23. land — ground
  24. cell — a phone

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