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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — a box
  7. mine — for digging
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cue — a signal
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. lie — to recline
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. cell — a phone
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. cell — in biology
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. squash — to crush
  21. squash — the sport
  22. cue — a hint
  23. chest — of your body
  24. squash — the vegetable

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