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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: chest · temple · rule · pound · wind · suit · field · mouse

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. field — for sport
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. rule — a law
  5. suit — clothes
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. rule — government
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. wind — moving air
  12. pound — a weight
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wind — moving air
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. chest — of your body
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. suit — to fit
  22. suit — in cards
  23. chest — a box
  24. wind — to turn a key

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