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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. staff — employees
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. chest — of your body
  6. pop — soda
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. pop — to visit
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. pop — music
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bat — the animal
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. sharp — clever
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. staff — a stick
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. staff — employees
  24. chest — of your body

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