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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. press — newspapers
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. hand — help
  9. rash — hasty
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bat — the animal
  12. rash — a series
  13. chest — of your body
  14. hand — in cards
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. press — to push
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. press — a publisher
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. jam — a tight spot

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