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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. ball — a dance
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. chest — a box
  12. wake — a trail
  13. stock — shares
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. plane — a tool
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. spring — the season
  20. spring — a coil
  21. stock — goods
  22. spring — of water
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. ball — a great time

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