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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 120 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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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: content · lean · arm · squash · chest · cap · rash · straw

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. lean — thin
  4. squash — the sport
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. cap — a hat
  8. squash — to crush
  9. cap — a lid
  10. chest — a box
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. cap — of ice
  13. lean — to bend
  14. rash — a series
  15. content — happy
  16. chest — of your body
  17. rash — hasty
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. chest — of your body
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. content — the amount
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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