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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're almost out of ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. pop — soda
  3. game — wild animals
  4. rush — hurry
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — music
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. bound — tied together
  11. pop — music
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. game — a match
  14. snap — to click
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bound — obliged
  17. craft — boats
  18. pop — to visit
  19. bound — certain
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. swing — in golf

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