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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bank — of a river
  4. tear — to rip
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. chest — a box
  7. spell — a short time
  8. roll — a list
  9. bank — for money
  10. ground — the earth
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. spell — letters
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bass — low music
  15. ground — crushed
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bank — for money
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. ground — a position
  21. mine — for digging
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. spell — magic
  24. roll — a cake

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