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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. chest — of your body
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. fall — to drop
  6. chest — of your body
  7. game — a match
  8. dip — to sink
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — the tool
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. game — wild animals
  13. staff — employees
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. drill — army training
  17. chest — a box
  18. fall — to drop
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. fall — the season
  21. mine — for digging
  22. staff — employees
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. mine — belonging to me

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