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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. track — a path
  3. net — for catching
  4. key — in music
  5. mate — a partner
  6. kid — child
  7. stem — to come from
  8. key — for a lock
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. net — after costs
  11. net — in sport
  12. rest — what's left
  13. key — the most important part
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. rest — a break
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a song
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. mate — to breed
  20. rest — what's left
  21. mate — a friend
  22. chest — of your body
  23. kid — to tease
  24. chest — of your body

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