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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. content — happy
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. band — a music group
  11. shower — rain
  12. band — a ring
  13. content — the amount
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bound — certain
  16. shower — to wash
  17. chest — a box
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. bound — obliged
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. bound — tied together
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. band — a rubber band

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