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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. march — the month
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. march — the month
  6. chest — a box
  7. race — a contest
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. race — humankind
  10. rash — hasty
  11. race — the arms race
  12. scale — in music
  13. march — music
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. rash — a series
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bat — the animal
  18. dip — to sink
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. scale — size or range
  21. foot — a measure
  22. chest — of your body
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. foot — the bottom

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