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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. chest — of your body
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. chest — a box
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — the season
  7. cell — in biology
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. drill — army training
  10. cell — a phone
  11. chest — of your body
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. drill — a practice
  18. kid — child
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. wax — to grow
  21. drill — the tool
  22. kid — to tease
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. wax — for sculpting

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