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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. snap — to click
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. rush — hurry
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. chest — of your body
  22. date — the fruit
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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