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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. season — in sport
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bear — the animal
  5. track — a path
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bear — the animal
  9. object — to protest
  10. track — a song
  11. chest — of your body
  12. file — a tool
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. roll — a list
  15. object — a thing
  16. season — of the year
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. track — to keep track
  19. wind — moving air
  20. roll — a cake
  21. file — a document
  22. object — an aim
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. chest — a box

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