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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. present — a gift
  3. present — the time now
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. spring — of water
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. chest — a box
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. present — there
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. wind — moving air
  15. sharp — clever
  16. can — a tin
  17. toast — bread
  18. spring — a coil
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. spring — the season
  21. can — a tin
  22. can — to be able to
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wind — moving air

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