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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: key · chest · arm · race · cold · dip · foot · tube

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. tube — a container
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. key — in music
  7. foot — a measure
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. tube — the underground
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. cold — not warm
  14. race — humankind
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. key — for a lock
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. key — the most important part
  19. race — a contest
  20. race — the arms race
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — a box
  24. chest — of your body

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