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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. bat — the animal
  6. track — a path
  7. key — for a lock
  8. tube — the underground
  9. lie — to recline
  10. tear — to rip
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. tube — a container
  14. key — in music
  15. wake — a trail
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. track — a song
  19. chest — a box
  20. key — the most important part
  21. track — to keep track
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wake — before a funeral

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