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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. object — to protest
  4. object — a thing
  5. object — an aim
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. chest — of your body
  8. club — for dancing
  9. press — to push
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. club — for golf
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. squash — the sport
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. club — a group
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. press — newspapers
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. press — a publisher
  21. chest — a box
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. squash — to crush
  24. squash — the vegetable

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