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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. cell — a phone
  8. wake — a trail
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. cue — a signal
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. chest — a box
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. ground — a position
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cue — a hint
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cue — for pool
  24. ground — the earth

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