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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. ground — crushed
  4. perch — the fish
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rash — a series
  7. date — the fruit
  8. chest — a box
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. ground — the earth
  15. cue — for pool
  16. rash — hasty
  17. ground — a position
  18. degree — an amount
  19. cue — a hint
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. degree — temperature
  22. chest — of your body
  23. cue — a signal
  24. date — on the calendar

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