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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. cue — a hint
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. rule — a law
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. can — a tin
  9. cold — an illness
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. cold — not warm
  16. can — to be able to
  17. hand — in cards
  18. rule — government
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. hand — help
  22. cue — for pool
  23. can — a tin
  24. cue — a signal

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