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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: sharp · foot · race · chest · mouse · mate · cell · wound

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. race — a contest
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mate — to breed
  8. chest — of your body
  9. sharp — clever
  10. chest — a box
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. cell — a phone
  13. race — humankind
  14. foot — a measure
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. mate — a friend
  19. wound — an injury
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. chest — of your body
  22. race — the arms race
  23. cell — in biology
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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