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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. wind — moving air
  4. chest — of your body
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — an amount
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. chest — a box
  15. wind — moving air
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. degree — from a university
  20. kid — child
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kid — to tease
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — a big deal

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