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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. face — to confront
  3. face — part of the head
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. bat — the animal
  16. face — to point toward
  17. mark — a trace
  18. stock — shares
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. mark — a grade
  21. snap — to click
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. stock — goods
  24. stand — to bear

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