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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. spell — a short time
  3. net — in sport
  4. fall — to drop
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. fall — the season
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. pit — a hole
  10. net — after costs
  11. land — ground
  12. spell — letters
  13. land — a country
  14. spell — magic
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. fall — to drop
  17. net — for catching
  18. land — to come down
  19. pit — in a race
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. sharp — clever
  23. chair — a leader
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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