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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — a box
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. cold — an illness
  6. pit — a hole
  7. squash — the sport
  8. row — a line
  9. row — to paddle
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. club — a group
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. club — for dancing
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. dip — to sink
  19. chest — of your body
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. pit — in a race
  22. club — for golf
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. cold — not warm

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