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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. chest — of your body
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. chest — of your body
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pop — music
  10. bat — the animal
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pop — soda
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. game — a match
  18. chest — a box
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. game — wild animals

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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