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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. squash — the sport
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pit — in a race
  6. chest — a box
  7. key — in music
  8. vault — a safe
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. stem — to come from
  11. squash — to crush
  12. pit — a hole
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — an illness
  21. chest — of your body
  22. key — for a lock
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. key — the most important part

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