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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. drill — a practice
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. mate — a friend
  5. content — the amount
  6. wind — moving air
  7. drill — the tool
  8. wind — moving air
  9. chip — to eat
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chip — for betting
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. mate — a partner
  18. chest — a box
  19. foot — a measure
  20. mate — to breed
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. drill — army training
  24. content — happy

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