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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. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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. rush — a thrill
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. rush — hurry
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wake — a trail
  9. cue — for pool
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. game — a match
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wound — an injury
  16. cue — a signal
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. cue — a hint
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. game — wild animals

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