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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: band · arm · spell · bore · bay · mate · swing · pound

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. mate — to breed
  3. spell — letters
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. mate — a partner
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. bore — to drill
  11. swing — in golf
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. swing — to play on
  16. band — a ring
  17. bore — to tire
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pound — a weight
  21. band — a music group
  22. swing — music
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. spell — magic

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