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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: arm · race · bear · net · chest · deal · can · mine

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. can — a tin
  3. chest — of your body
  4. net — for catching
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bear — the animal
  7. deal — to handle
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. race — a contest
  10. net — in sport
  11. race — humankind
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. can — a tin
  17. mine — for digging
  18. can — to be able to
  19. net — after costs
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. race — the arms race
  24. bear — the animal

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