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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 sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. chest — of your body
  4. tear — from crying
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. wax — to grow
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. mate — to breed
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — after costs
  11. row — to paddle
  12. mate — a friend
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. tear — to rip
  15. chest — of your body
  16. tear — from crying
  17. chest — a box
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. row — a line
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. mate — a partner
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. net — in sport

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