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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wound — an injury
  4. staff — employees
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. chest — a box
  12. wound — an injury
  13. charge — electricity
  14. dip — to sink
  15. staff — employees
  16. charge — in control
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. court — of a king
  19. charge — a price
  20. chest — of your body
  21. staff — a stick
  22. court — of law
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. court — for sport

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