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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. cold — an illness
  4. club — for dancing
  5. swing — music
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a friend
  8. chest — a box
  9. ground — a position
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. chest — of your body
  14. swing — in golf
  15. cold — not warm
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. ground — crushed
  18. club — a group
  19. tube — the underground
  20. club — for golf
  21. ground — the earth
  22. mate — a partner
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. swing — to play on

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