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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: last · land · chest · rule · prune · foot · pound · press

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. prune — to trim
  3. land — a country
  4. land — to come down
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. land — ground
  8. press — newspapers
  9. foot — a measure
  10. last — to go on
  11. pound — a weight
  12. rule — a law
  13. rule — government
  14. press — a publisher
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. last — final
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. press — to push
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. last — finally
  24. pound — for dogs

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