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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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 sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — an illness
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. scale — in music
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. cold — not warm
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. chest — of your body
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. chest — of your body
  16. content — happy
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. kick — in football
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. scale — size or range
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. chest — a box
  24. bowl — to roll

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