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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  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. prune — the fruit
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. charge — in control
  5. date — the fruit
  6. firm — steady
  7. cold — not warm
  8. chest — of your body
  9. charge — a price
  10. chest — a box
  11. cold — an illness
  12. firm — a company
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. firm — decided
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. prune — to trim
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. prune — to trim
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. charge — electricity
  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