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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. pit — in a race
  4. band — a music group
  5. root — of a word
  6. band — a ring
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. mate — a friend
  10. chest — of your body
  11. root — the cause
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. mate — to breed
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — a phone
  16. root — of a plant
  17. cell — in biology
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. mate — a partner
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. chest — a box

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