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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — a box
  3. mark — a grade
  4. ground — crushed
  5. kid — to tease
  6. rest — what's left
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. bulb — for light
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. rest — a break
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — a position
  19. kid — child
  20. wind — moving air
  21. mark — a trace
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. bulb — for light

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