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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: content · cold · racket · chest · tear · cabinet · arm · hand

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. chest — of your body
  5. tear — from crying
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. hand — in cards
  14. hand — help
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. tear — to rip
  18. content — happy
  19. tear — from crying
  20. content — the amount
  21. chest — of your body
  22. cold — an illness
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. cabinet — ministers

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