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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. charge — in control
  3. object — to protest
  4. mate — a partner
  5. season — of the year
  6. clip — for paper
  7. charge — a price
  8. fall — to drop
  9. chest — of your body
  10. clip — a video
  11. charge — electricity
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. mate — a friend
  16. object — a thing
  17. suit — clothes
  18. suit — to fit
  19. clip — to cut
  20. chest — a box
  21. object — an aim
  22. mate — to breed
  23. season — in sport
  24. suit — in cards

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