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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cell — a phone
  3. chest — of your body
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. last — final
  6. row — a line
  7. shower — to wash
  8. lean — to bend
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. shower — rain
  12. present — a gift
  13. present — there
  14. row — to paddle
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. present — the time now
  17. cell — in biology
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — a box
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. last — to go on
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. lean — thin
  24. last — finally

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