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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pound — a weight
  3. ground — crushed
  4. firm — steady
  5. face — part of the head
  6. chair — a leader
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. ground — the earth
  12. face — to point toward
  13. firm — decided
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. face — to confront
  16. branch — a division
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. date — the fruit
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. ground — a position
  23. firm — a company
  24. date — on the calendar

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