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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. march — music
  3. suit — to fit
  4. pound — a weight
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. land — to come down
  7. hand — in cards
  8. lean — thin
  9. land — a country
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. march — the month
  13. chest — a box
  14. chest — of your body
  15. march — the month
  16. suit — in cards
  17. suit — clothes
  18. hand — help
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. lean — to bend

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