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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: pop · bear · bat · temple · fall · race · chest · deal

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fall — the season
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. chest — of your body
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. fall — to drop
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. race — humankind
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. deal — to handle
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. pop — to visit
  17. chest — a box
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — the animal
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. race — the arms race
  23. race — a contest
  24. pop — soda

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