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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. chest — a box
  4. rule — government
  5. race — the arms race
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. rule — a law
  8. present — the time now
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. present — there
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. race — humankind
  16. capital — a city
  17. present — a gift
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. chest — of your body
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. capital — money
  22. race — a contest
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. lash — to lash out

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