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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. rest — what's left
  4. present — there
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. sharp — clever
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. clip — a video
  11. chest — of your body
  12. tube — the underground
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. chest — a box
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. ball — a dance
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. clip — to cut
  20. ball — a great time
  21. tube — a container
  22. present — the time now
  23. clip — for paper
  24. present — a gift

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