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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.

Make a worksheet

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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468
Word bank
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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 sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. object — a thing
  6. chest — of your body
  7. root — of a word
  8. object — an aim
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. root — of a plant
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. wax — to grow
  13. chest — a box
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. cold — not warm
  16. kid — to tease
  17. roll — a list
  18. roll — a cake
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. kid — child
  21. chest — of your body
  22. object — to protest
  23. cold — an illness
  24. root — the cause

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