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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. rest — a break
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. mug — a face
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. chest — of your body
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. shower — rain
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bulb — for light
  13. kick — in football
  14. mug — a cup
  15. rest — what's left
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. shower — to wash
  18. mug — to rob
  19. bulb — for light
  20. chest — a box
  21. pitch — completely
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. rest — what's left
  24. pitch — a sports field

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