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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — a box
  5. mark — a trace
  6. cap — of ice
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. cap — a lid
  9. kid — child
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. mark — a grade
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. branch — a division
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. degree — temperature
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. degree — an amount
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. cap — a hat
  22. degree — from a university
  23. kid — to tease
  24. calf — of the leg

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