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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. plane — a tool
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. game — a match
  7. chest — of your body
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. ground — crushed
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. chest — of your body
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. chest — a box
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. game — wild animals
  22. ground — the earth
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. ground — a position

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