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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. foot — a measure
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pit — in a race
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. chest — a box
  7. pit — a hole
  8. hand — help
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. hand — in cards
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. ground — a position
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. chest — of your body
  20. ground — crushed
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. ground — the earth
  24. hand — part of the 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