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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. bulb — for light
  4. chest — a box
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. tear — from crying
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. bulb — for light
  10. press — a publisher
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. chest — of your body
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. press — to push
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. tear — from crying
  22. press — newspapers
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. tear — to rip

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