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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rash — hasty
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. degree — temperature
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. chest — a box
  13. rash — a series
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bat — the animal
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. chest — of your body
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. lash — to lash out

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