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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. mug — a face
  3. pit — a hole
  4. mug — a cup
  5. cue — a signal
  6. mug — to rob
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cue — a hint
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. root — of a word
  12. wind — moving air
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. chest — of your body
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. pit — in a race
  18. root — of a plant
  19. root — the cause
  20. tear — from crying
  21. chest — of your body
  22. dip — to sink
  23. cue — for pool
  24. wind — to turn a key

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