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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. kid — child
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pound — a weight
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. chest — a box
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. kid — to tease
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. chest — of your body
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. toast — bread
  24. sharp — with an edge

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