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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. chest — a box
  3. chest — of your body
  4. lean — thin
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pitch — completely
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. lean — to bend
  11. degree — an amount
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. capital — money
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. chest — of your body
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. degree — from a university
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. capital — a city
  23. degree — temperature
  24. lean — to rest against

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