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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 laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bound — certain
  4. field — a subject
  5. chest — a box
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. object — to protest
  12. object — a thing
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. pass — a permit
  15. field — farmland
  16. mine — for digging
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bound — tied together
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. object — an aim
  23. cell — a phone
  24. field — for 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