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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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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: chest · tear · wave · rock · stem · mug · capital · hide

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. rock — music
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mug — a face
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. mug — to rob
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. capital — a city
  9. tear — from crying
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mug — a cup
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stem — to come from
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. rock — a stone
  19. tear — from crying
  20. capital — money
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. tear — to rip
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. chest — a box

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