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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 sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. shower — rain
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. shower — to wash
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. date — the fruit
  13. snap — to click
  14. chest — of your body
  15. tube — the underground
  16. pop — music
  17. fork — in a road
  18. chest — of your body
  19. pop — soda
  20. tube — a container
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. chest — a box
  23. pop — to visit
  24. tube — in a tire

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