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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 120 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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. chest — of your body
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. tear — to rip
  6. fall — the season
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. bass — low music
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bass — the fish
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. chest — a box
  14. fall — to drop
  15. tear — from crying
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. chest — of your body
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lie — to recline
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bass — the instrument

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