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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. track — a song
  5. rash — hasty
  6. pound — a weight
  7. chair — a leader
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. rash — a series
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. cold — an illness
  16. track — a path
  17. rush — hurry
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. cold — not warm
  24. track — to keep track

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