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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. row — a line
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. object — a thing
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — of ice
  11. chest — of your body
  12. object — to protest
  13. object — an aim
  14. chest — of your body
  15. saw — the tool
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. chest — a box
  20. saw — the tool
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. rush — hurry
  23. row — to paddle
  24. cap — a lid

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