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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 120 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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. mug — to rob
  4. capital — money
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. chest — of your body
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. season — in sport
  10. mug — a face
  11. dip — to sink
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. season — of the year
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — a short time
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. capital — a city
  19. mug — a cup
  20. chest — a box
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. spell — magic
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. season — to add flavour

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