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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. chest — of your body
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. spell — magic
  6. fall — to drop
  7. face — to point toward
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. stand — to bear
  10. chest — of your body
  11. ground — the earth
  12. face — to confront
  13. ground — a position
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. chest — a box
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. ground — crushed
  19. spell — a short time
  20. fall — the season
  21. spell — letters
  22. fall — to drop
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. face — part of the head

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