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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: chest · chair · press · wave · sharp · pound · pop · racket

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. press — a publisher
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. pop — soda
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. sharp — clever
  15. press — newspapers
  16. pop — music
  17. chair — a leader
  18. pop — to visit
  19. pound — a weight
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. press — to push
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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