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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 120 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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. chip — to eat
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. chest — of your body
  6. lean — thin
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. chip — for betting
  14. cold — not warm
  15. pop — soda
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. lean — to bend
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pop — to visit
  20. pop — music
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. chest — of your body

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