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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 · lash · row · degree · chair · snap · content · pitcher

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. content — the amount
  4. degree — an amount
  5. chair — a leader
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. snap — to click
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pound — a weight
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. content — happy
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. row — to paddle

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