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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. key — in music
  3. chest — a box
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. lean — thin
  7. chest — of your body
  8. spring — the season
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. chest — of your body
  12. spring — a coil
  13. key — for a lock
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. rash — hasty
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rash — a series
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. key — the most important part
  22. spring — of water
  23. lean — to bend
  24. kid — to tease

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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