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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. game — wild animals
  4. cell — a phone
  5. pass — a permit
  6. land — a country
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. chest — of your body
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. chest — a box
  11. cell — in biology
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. lean — thin
  15. cue — a signal
  16. game — a match
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. cue — for pool
  19. cue — a hint
  20. land — ground
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lean — to bend
  24. arm — part of the 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