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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. rash — a series
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. spell — magic
  11. bass — the fish
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. spell — letters
  14. bulb — for light
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. chest — a box
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bass — low music
  22. spell — a short time
  23. bulb — for light
  24. rash — on the skin

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