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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. chest — of your body
  5. file — a line of people
  6. staff — employees
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. file — a tool
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. court — for sport
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. court — of law
  14. staff — employees
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. chest — of your body
  17. kid — child
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. staff — a stick
  20. court — of a king
  21. date — the fruit
  22. kid — to tease
  23. file — a document
  24. dip — to sink

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