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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: plane · bound · chest · pass · perch · shower · deal · pound

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bound — obliged
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pass — a permit
  9. chest — of your body
  10. perch — the fish
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. shower — to wash
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. pound — a weight
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. plane — a tool
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — tied together
  19. shower — rain
  20. chest — a box
  21. deal — to handle
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. perch — for a bird

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