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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. content — the amount
  4. rest — what's left
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. rest — a break
  8. stand — to bear
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. chest — a box
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. kick — in football
  19. chest — of your body
  20. suit — clothes
  21. suit — in cards
  22. content — happy
  23. suit — to fit
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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