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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. bound — certain
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. root — the cause
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. root — of a plant
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. root — of a word
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. land — ground
  15. drill — the tool
  16. bound — obliged
  17. land — to come down
  18. chest — a box
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. land — a country
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. kick — in football
  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