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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: suit · pound · chest · arm · degree · object · saw · present

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. present — there
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. suit — clothes
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. suit — to fit
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. object — an aim
  9. chest — a box
  10. degree — an amount
  11. chest — of your body
  12. object — to protest
  13. present — a gift
  14. present — the time now
  15. degree — temperature
  16. object — a thing
  17. chest — of your body
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. suit — in cards
  21. pound — a weight
  22. degree — from a university
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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