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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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. perch — for a bird
  4. file — a line of people
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. chest — a box
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — the fish
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — crushed
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. chest — of your body
  22. snap — to click
  23. ground — a position
  24. nail — on a finger

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