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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  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. snap — to speak sharply
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rest — what's left
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. rest — what's left
  7. foot — a measure
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. object — a thing
  12. snap — to click
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. chest — of your body
  15. object — an aim
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rest — a break
  21. object — to protest
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. mine — an explosive
  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