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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  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. stand — for spectators
  4. capital — money
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — a box
  7. capital — a city
  8. swing — to play on
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. ball — a dance
  11. race — humankind
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. rock — a stone
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. swing — music
  16. stand — to bear
  17. rock — music
  18. swing — in golf
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. race — the arms race
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. race — a contest
  23. coach — a trainer
  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