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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. foot — a measure
  4. rule — government
  5. plane — a tool
  6. chest — a box
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. chest — of your body
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. pound — a weight
  13. land — to come down
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. land — ground
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. chest — of your body
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. land — a country
  23. kick — in football
  24. rule — a law

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