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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mate — a friend
  3. deal — to handle
  4. bulb — for light
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. kid — to tease
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. pitch — completely
  13. field — a subject
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. kid — child
  17. chest — a box
  18. field — farmland
  19. mate — to breed
  20. field — for sport
  21. mate — a partner
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. chest — of your body

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