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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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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: field · rule · leaves · firm · chair · hand · pound · chest

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. hand — in cards
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — government
  11. pound — a weight
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. firm — steady
  15. firm — a company
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. rule — a law
  18. hand — help
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. field — for sport
  21. field — a subject
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chest — of your body
  24. field — farmland

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