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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rock — music
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rock — a stone
  6. shower — rain
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. drill — a practice
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. chest — a box
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — army training
  15. bear — the animal
  16. tear — from crying
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. bear — the animal
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bear — to put up with

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