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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. foot — a measure
  7. tear — from crying
  8. chest — of your body
  9. swing — in golf
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. swing — music
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. can — to be able to
  21. chest — a box
  22. swing — to play on
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  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