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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: chair · pound · march · hand · toast · snap · wound · wave

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. march — music
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. wound — an injury
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. toast — bread
  9. wound — an injury
  10. chair — a leader
  11. hand — in cards
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. pound — a weight
  18. march — the month
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. hand — help
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. snap — to click
  24. march — the month

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