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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chair · wind · jam · track · rest · pound

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. wind — moving air
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — a break
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. track — a song
  13. chair — a leader
  14. track — a path
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. track — to keep track

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