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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. plane — a tool
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. cold — not warm
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. chest — a box
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — to grow
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. cold — an illness
  20. snap — to click
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. chest — of your body
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. foot — a measure

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