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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: deal · bass · chest · pound · race · chair

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. pound — a weight
  3. race — humankind
  4. bass — the fish
  5. chest — of your body
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. bass — low music
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. race — the arms race
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. chair — a leader
  14. deal — to handle
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. race — a contest

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