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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. chest — a box
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chest — of your body
  8. stock — goods
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. stock — shares
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. kid — child
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. deal — to handle
  24. kid — to tease

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