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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. charge — electricity
  3. scale — in music
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. march — the month
  9. chest — of your body
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. chest — a box
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. scale — size or range
  17. march — music
  18. charge — in control
  19. lie — to recline
  20. perch — the fish
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. march — the month
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. charge — a price

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