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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 laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — a box
  3. deal — to handle
  4. mate — to breed
  5. rash — hasty
  6. mate — a friend
  7. chest — of your body
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — a phone
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mate — a partner
  15. hand — help
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. hand — in cards
  18. prune — to trim
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rush — hurry
  21. rash — a series
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. cell — in a prison

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