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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mate — a partner
  3. club — for golf
  4. club — a group
  5. chest — of your body
  6. root — of a plant
  7. mate — a friend
  8. race — the arms race
  9. mate — to breed
  10. object — to protest
  11. club — for dancing
  12. root — the cause
  13. object — an aim
  14. race — humankind
  15. object — a thing
  16. chest — a box
  17. root — of a word
  18. race — a contest

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