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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. rest — what's left
  5. date — the fruit
  6. rash — a series
  7. chest — of your body
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. rest — what's left
  10. mine — for digging
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rest — a break
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. pit — a hole
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pit — in a race
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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