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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. tube — a container
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. chest — of your body
  5. object — an aim
  6. race — the arms race
  7. race — a contest
  8. file — a tool
  9. swing — to play on
  10. file — a line of people
  11. roll — a cake
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. chest — a box
  14. swing — music
  15. roll — a list
  16. race — humankind
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. object — a thing
  19. object — to protest
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. tube — the underground
  23. file — a document
  24. swing — in golf

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