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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. chest — a box
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. chest — of your body
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. snap — to click
  7. staff — employees
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. staff — employees
  10. lie — to recline
  11. tear — from crying
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. staff — a stick
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. chest — of your body
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. safe — a strongbox

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