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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. chest — of your body
  7. rock — a stone
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. current — of water
  10. sharp — clever
  11. current — happening now
  12. land — ground
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. foot — a measure
  19. chest — a box
  20. current — electric
  21. rock — music
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. racket — for tennis

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