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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. object — to protest
  4. game — a match
  5. face — part of the head
  6. season — in sport
  7. season — of the year
  8. face — to point toward
  9. chest — a box
  10. present — a gift
  11. pound — a weight
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. object — an aim
  14. object — a thing
  15. present — there
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. present — the time now
  20. face — to confront
  21. game — wild animals
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pound — to hit hard

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