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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. chest — of your body
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. cue — a hint
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. chest — of your body
  7. mine — for digging
  8. chest — a box
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. content — the amount
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. cue — a signal
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. content — happy
  18. cue — for pool

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