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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. capital — money
  3. fall — the season
  4. chest — of your body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pass — a permit
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. fall — to drop
  18. lie — to recline
  19. fall — to drop
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. chest — a box
  22. stem — to come from
  23. capital — a city
  24. lie — an untruth

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