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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. chest — of your body
  3. squash — the sport
  4. drill — the tool
  5. spell — a short time
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — army training
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. march — the month
  11. chest — a box
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. lean — thin
  14. spell — magic
  15. spell — letters
  16. march — music
  17. lean — to bend
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. chest — of your body
  20. squash — to crush
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. march — the month
  24. pound — a weight

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