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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. pass — a permit
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. band — a ring
  6. current — of water
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — final
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. current — electric
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. kid — to tease
  13. cue — for pool
  14. current — happening now
  15. chest — of your body
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. chest — of your body
  18. band — a music group
  19. cue — a hint
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. chest — a box
  23. cue — a signal
  24. last — finally

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