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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. deal — to handle
  3. mug — a cup
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. clip — a video
  6. chest — a box
  7. clip — to cut
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. mug — a face
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. shower — rain
  12. clip — for paper
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. shower — to wash
  17. mug — to rob
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. rush — hurry
  23. roll — a list
  24. roll — a cake

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