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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 quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. sharp — clever
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. chest — a box
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. staff — employees
  7. staff — employees
  8. chest — of your body
  9. net — for catching
  10. charge — in control
  11. cold — not warm
  12. net — after costs
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. charge — a price
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. staff — a stick
  20. net — in sport
  21. cold — an illness
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. charge — electricity

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