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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: present · root · chest · snap · lean · pound · race · cell

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. pound — a weight
  3. race — the arms race
  4. present — a gift
  5. race — humankind
  6. snap — to click
  7. present — there
  8. present — the time now
  9. cell — in biology
  10. root — of a word
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. cell — a phone
  13. root — of a plant
  14. chest — of your body
  15. root — the cause
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. lean — to bend
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. race — a contest
  21. lean — thin
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. chest — a box

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