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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. rush — hurry
  4. snap — to click
  5. pound — a weight
  6. chair — a leader
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bass — the fish
  13. chest — of your body
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. chest — a box
  16. bass — low music
  17. fork — in a road
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. chair — to sit on

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