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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. chest — of your body
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. ground — a position
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. stand — to bear
  9. ground — the earth
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ground — crushed
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. chest — a box
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. temple — a place of worship

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