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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: mouse · racket · chip · tear · march · row · pound · stand

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. chip — for betting
  3. tear — from crying
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. row — a line
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. chip — to eat
  12. tear — to rip
  13. march — the month
  14. tear — from crying
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. row — to paddle
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. march — music
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. march — the month
  22. pound — a weight
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

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