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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cell — a phone
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. court — for sport
  7. current — of water
  8. mug — a cup
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. current — happening now
  11. chest — a box
  12. mug — a face
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. mug — to rob
  17. band — a ring
  18. cell — in biology
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. band — a music group
  23. current — electric
  24. cell — in a prison

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