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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. kid — to tease
  3. march — the month
  4. chest — a box
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. last — final
  9. march — music
  10. degree — temperature
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. suit — to fit
  13. degree — an amount
  14. kick — in football
  15. chest — of your body
  16. march — the month
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. kid — child
  20. suit — in cards
  21. degree — from a university
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. suit — clothes
  24. kick — a thrill

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