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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  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. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — the animal
  4. content — the amount
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. chest — a box
  7. swing — music
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mark — a trace
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. swing — in golf
  16. content — happy
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pitch — completely
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. mark — a grade
  23. fan — to cool the air
  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