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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. chest — of your body
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. capital — money
  13. march — the month
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. march — the month
  16. field — a subject
  17. rush — hurry
  18. march — music
  19. capital — a city
  20. sharp — clever
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. dip — to sink
  24. capital — a big letter

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