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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. row — a line
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. suit — to fit
  7. chest — a box
  8. suit — in cards
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — in a road
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. foot — a measure
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. prune — to trim
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. chest — of your body
  22. row — to paddle
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. suit — clothes

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