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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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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: snap · capital · chest · saw · pound · can · bound · pitcher

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. chest — of your body
  3. can — a tin
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to click
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. can — to be able to
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. saw — the tool
  13. chest — of your body
  14. capital — a city
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. can — a tin
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. chest — a box
  19. bound — certain
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — obliged
  23. saw — the tool
  24. capital — money

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