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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 120 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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. scale — size or range
  3. rash — a series
  4. fall — to drop
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. cap — a hat
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rash — hasty
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. lean — to bend
  11. fall — to drop
  12. lean — thin
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cap — a lid
  15. net — after costs
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. net — in sport
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. scale — in music
  21. cap — of ice
  22. chest — a box
  23. net — for catching
  24. fall — the season

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