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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. net — in sport
  4. race — humankind
  5. race — a contest
  6. tear — from crying
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. race — the arms race
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. chest — a box
  15. net — for catching
  16. tear — from crying
  17. net — after costs
  18. tear — to rip
  19. row — a line
  20. lean — thin
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. row — to paddle
  24. lean — to rest against

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