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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bound — tied together
  3. bound — obliged
  4. chest — a box
  5. kid — to tease
  6. pitch — completely
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. chest — of your body
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bound — certain
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. shower — to wash
  15. kid — child
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. saw — the tool
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. shower — rain
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. arm — part of the 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