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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mug — to rob
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. mug — a face
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. hand — help
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — a position
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. hand — in cards
  16. kick — in football
  17. mug — a cup
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. chest — of your body
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. chest — a box
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. jam — in traffic

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