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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 get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — a box
  4. pound — a weight
  5. board — to get on
  6. spring — of water
  7. spring — the season
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. suit — clothes
  10. suit — in cards
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. scale — size or range
  13. wax — to grow
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. suit — to fit
  16. chest — of your body
  17. kick — in football
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. board — a committee
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. scale — in music
  24. spring — a coil

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