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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mug — a face
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rest — a break
  9. mug — a cup
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pit — in a race
  12. fall — the season
  13. pit — a hole
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. chest — a box
  17. rash — hasty
  18. mug — to rob
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. chest — of your body

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