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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. mate — a friend
  4. bass — the fish
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. mate — to breed
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. scale — in music
  10. bore — to tire
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bass — low music
  14. mine — for digging
  15. chest — a box
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mate — a partner
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bore — to drill
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. dip — to sink
  24. scale — size or range

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