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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. hand — in cards
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. charge — a price
  8. charge — in control
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. charge — electricity
  12. shower — to wash
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. shower — rain
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — help
  19. chest — a box
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. row — to paddle
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. row — a line

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