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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. can — to be able to
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. tube — a container
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. snap — to click
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. tube — the underground
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. wind — moving air
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. can — a tin
  20. toast — bread
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. wind — moving air
  23. can — a tin
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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