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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. chest — a box
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. bass — the fish
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bass — low music
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. saw — the tool
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. hand — help
  15. fork — in a road
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. shower — rain
  20. hand — in cards
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. shower — to wash
  24. chest — of your body

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