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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. kid — to tease
  9. cold — an illness
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bass — the fish
  14. cold — not warm
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bass — low music
  18. spell — a short time
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. spell — letters
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. spell — magic
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. kid — child

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