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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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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: can · sharp · cell · arm · ground · tear · chest · board

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. tear — to rip
  3. sharp — clever
  4. board — a committee
  5. ground — a position
  6. chest — of your body
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. chest — of your body
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. ground — the earth
  11. can — a tin
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. cell — a phone
  15. tear — from crying
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. chest — a box
  18. board — to get on
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. tear — from crying
  21. ground — crushed
  22. can — to be able to
  23. cell — in biology
  24. arm — part of the 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