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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: pound · chest · kid · board · dip · field · mate · bear

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. dip — to sink
  3. mate — a partner
  4. board — to get on
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. chest — a box
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. board — a committee
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. mate — a friend
  12. bear — the animal
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. field — for sport
  17. kid — child
  18. bear — the animal
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. field — a subject
  22. mate — to breed
  23. field — farmland
  24. kid — to tease

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