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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mate · chest · stick · race · cue · kid

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mate — a friend
  3. race — the arms race
  4. chest — a box
  5. cue — a signal
  6. kid — to tease
  7. cue — a hint
  8. mate — to breed
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. mate — a partner
  11. race — a contest
  12. chest — of your body
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. race — humankind
  17. cue — for pool
  18. kid — child

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