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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. track — a path
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. fall — to drop
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. fall — the season
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. chest — a box
  9. fall — to drop
  10. race — humankind
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. track — to keep track
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. race — the arms race
  15. band — a music group
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. band — a ring
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. race — a contest
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. track — a song
  23. chest — of your body
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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