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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. pop — soda
  5. pop — music
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fine — high quality
  8. degree — an amount
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pop — to visit
  12. present — a gift
  13. degree — temperature
  14. pound — a weight
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. present — the time now
  21. present — there
  22. fall — the season
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — of your body

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