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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. object — to protest
  3. chest — of your body
  4. band — a ring
  5. sharp — clever
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — in biology
  10. shower — to wash
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. band — a music group
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. chest — a box
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. shower — rain
  19. object — a thing
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. object — an aim
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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