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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 cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bound — obliged
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — certain
  7. tear — from crying
  8. march — music
  9. march — the month
  10. fall — the season
  11. swing — music
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. tear — to rip
  15. swing — in golf
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pit — in a race
  18. pit — a hole
  19. fall — to drop
  20. march — the month
  21. chest — a box
  22. fall — to drop
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. swing — to play on

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