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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. land — ground
  3. toast — bread
  4. rest — what's left
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. rest — a break
  9. rest — what's left
  10. ground — a position
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. foot — a measure
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. chest — of your body
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. land — a country
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wake — a trail
  20. land — to come down
  21. ground — the earth
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. chest — a box

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