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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. chest — of your body
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. tear — from crying
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. roll — a list
  7. snap — to click
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. chest — of your body
  13. roll — a cake
  14. cue — for pool
  15. cue — a hint
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. tear — from crying
  19. chest — a box
  20. kick — in football
  21. date — the fruit
  22. cue — a signal
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. tear — to rip

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