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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: cap · pound · object · chest · nail · kick · wake · game

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. pound — a weight
  6. cap — a hat
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. cap — of ice
  10. kick — in football
  11. object — to protest
  12. game — a match
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. chest — of your body
  15. object — an aim
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. chest — a box
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. cap — a lid
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. game — wild animals
  24. object — a thing

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