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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — a box
  3. spell — magic
  4. club — for dancing
  5. file — a line of people
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. club — a group
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. spell — a short time
  10. chest — of your body
  11. rash — hasty
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. rash — a series
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. kick — in football
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. spell — letters
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. file — a document
  22. club — for golf
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. file — a tool

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