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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. march — the month
  3. firm — a company
  4. squash — to crush
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. chest — of your body
  7. tear — to rip
  8. board — to get on
  9. tear — from crying
  10. firm — decided
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. chest — a box
  14. firm — steady
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pound — a weight
  17. tear — from crying
  18. squash — the sport
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. march — music
  21. board — a committee
  22. wind — moving air
  23. march — the month
  24. pound — to hit hard

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