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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. chest — of your body
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. ball — a dance
  5. face — to confront
  6. mine — for digging
  7. chest — of your body
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. ball — a great time
  10. prune — to trim
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. chest — a box
  13. date — the fruit
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. staff — a stick
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. staff — employees
  18. face — to point toward
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. prune — to trim
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. face — part of the head
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. staff — employees

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