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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. fall — to drop
  5. current — electric
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. suit — in cards
  8. suit — clothes
  9. saw — the tool
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bat — the animal
  13. fall — the season
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — of water
  20. fall — to drop
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. suit — to fit
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bat — in an idiom

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