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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. cold — an illness
  3. scale — size or range
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. tube — a container
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. mark — a trace
  10. cold — not warm
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mark — a grade
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. rash — hasty
  16. mate — a friend
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. mate — a partner
  20. tube — the underground
  21. chest — a box
  22. rash — a series
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. mate — to breed

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