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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. game — a match
  4. pit — a hole
  5. key — the most important part
  6. game — wild animals
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. rest — a break
  9. chest — of your body
  10. rest — what's left
  11. key — for a lock
  12. rest — what's left
  13. kid — child
  14. key — in music
  15. bass — the fish
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bass — low music
  20. chest — of your body
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. pit — in a race

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