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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: cell · rash · toast · hand · plane · suit · chest · bore

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. toast — bread
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. suit — clothes
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. chest — of your body
  8. hand — help
  9. suit — to fit
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — a box
  12. hand — in cards
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. suit — in cards
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — to tire
  21. plane — a tool
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. rash — a series

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