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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. mark — a grade
  3. cell — in biology
  4. mine — for digging
  5. mark — a trace
  6. club — for dancing
  7. cell — a phone
  8. root — of a word
  9. rest — what's left
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. chest — a box
  12. rest — a break
  13. club — for golf
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wound — an injury
  18. club — a group
  19. root — the cause
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. chest — of your body
  24. root — of a plant

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