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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 120 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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. race — the arms race
  3. chest — of your body
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. can — a tin
  6. race — humankind
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — the earth
  9. content — happy
  10. content — the amount
  11. chest — of your body
  12. can — a tin
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. dip — to sink
  15. ground — a position
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. can — to be able to
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. race — a contest

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