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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. charge — a price
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. charge — in control
  6. chest — of your body
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. charge — electricity
  11. degree — from a university
  12. cold — an illness
  13. chest — a box
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. lie — to recline
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. foot — a measure
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. foot — part of the body

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