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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. charge — electricity
  3. last — finally
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bark — to shout
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. last — to go on
  12. charge — a price
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. chest — a box
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. last — final
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. stem — to come from
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. charge — in control

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