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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: pop · saw · firm · chest · snap · tear · chair · wound

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. tear — from crying
  3. chair — a leader
  4. pop — music
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. firm — decided
  10. pop — soda
  11. tear — from crying
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. firm — a company
  16. chest — a box
  17. tear — to rip
  18. snap — to click
  19. firm — steady
  20. pop — to visit
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. saw — the tool
  24. wound — an injury

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