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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  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. wound — an injury
  3. chair — a leader
  4. fork — in a road
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — to drop
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. wound — an injury
  10. fall — the season
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. chest — of your body
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. bark — to shout
  23. fork — to eat with
  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