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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 that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. mug — to rob
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. rash — hasty
  6. tear — from crying
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. rash — a series
  9. mug — a cup
  10. race — humankind
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. drill — army training
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. drill — the tool
  15. drill — a practice
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. tear — from crying
  18. race — the arms race
  19. chest — of your body
  20. tear — to rip
  21. chest — a box
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. race — a contest

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