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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. toast — bread
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — happy
  5. rule — a law
  6. kid — child
  7. chest — of your body
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. kid — to tease
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rest — what's left
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. tear — to rip
  17. rest — a break
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. rest — what's left
  23. chest — a box
  24. rule — government

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