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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. rash — hasty
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. kid — child
  7. squash — to crush
  8. bat — the animal
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. kid — to tease
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. squash — the sport
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. rash — a series

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