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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's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. chest — of your body
  3. key — in music
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. wound — an injury
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. key — the most important part
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. chest — a box
  13. chest — of your body
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. date — the fruit
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. wound — an injury
  21. key — for a lock
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. calf — a young animal

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