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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's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. deal — to handle
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. tear — to rip
  9. chest — of your body
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. chest — a box
  13. pass — a permit
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. tear — from crying
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. chest — of your body
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. tear — from crying
  24. sharp — clever

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