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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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Word bank
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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: chest · mug · stick · spell · pound · ground · nail · kick

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. chest — of your body
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. ground — a position
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. kick — in football
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. mug — a face
  11. ground — the earth
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. spell — a short time
  14. ground — crushed
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. mug — to rob
  20. mug — a cup
  21. spell — magic
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. pound — a weight

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