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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. rush — hurry
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. wind — moving air
  10. press — newspapers
  11. wind — moving air
  12. track — a path
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. track — to keep track
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. chest — a box
  17. press — to push
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. kick — in football
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. chest — of your body
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. press — a publisher

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