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

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. content — the amount
  6. content — happy
  7. foot — a measure
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. chest — of your body
  11. deal — to handle
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bat — the animal
  15. chest — of your body
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. lie — to recline
  18. 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