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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: cold · pound · chest · clip · lean · cabinet · pit · track

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. clip — for paper
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. cold — an illness
  7. track — to keep track
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pit — in a race
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. track — a path
  13. pound — a weight
  14. lean — to bend
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. lean — thin
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. clip — a video
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. clip — to cut
  22. pit — a hole
  23. chest — of your body
  24. track — a song

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