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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. rush — hurry
  6. race — humankind
  7. last — final
  8. chest — of your body
  9. last — finally
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. race — the arms race
  14. degree — temperature
  15. last — to go on
  16. squash — the sport
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. degree — from a university
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. squash — to crush
  21. bear — the animal
  22. race — a contest
  23. chest — a box
  24. degree — an amount

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