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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. pound — a weight
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. chest — a box
  6. band — a music group
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. roll — a list
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. band — a ring
  14. roll — a cake
  15. last — final
  16. chest — of your body
  17. last — finally
  18. last — to go on

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