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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 120 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. fine — high quality
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. rest — a break
  9. cold — an illness
  10. shower — rain
  11. rock — music
  12. shower — to wash
  13. firm — a company
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. firm — decided
  16. firm — steady
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rock — a stone
  19. wax — to grow
  20. chest — a box
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. rest — what's left
  23. fine — all right
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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