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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mate — a partner
  3. tear — from crying
  4. stem — to come from
  5. ball — a dance
  6. can — a tin
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. mate — to breed
  9. ball — a great time
  10. band — a music group
  11. bore — to drill
  12. can — to be able to
  13. tear — to rip
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. mate — a friend
  16. chest — a box
  17. can — a tin
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. tear — from crying
  20. band — a ring
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bore — to tire
  24. stem — a stem cell

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