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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pitcher · chest · swing · lean · dip · wax · lie · cold

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. dip — to sink
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. cold — an illness
  5. swing — in golf
  6. cold — not warm
  7. lean — thin
  8. chest — a box
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — to grow
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. swing — music
  17. lie — to recline
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. lean — to bend
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. chest — of your body
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. swing — to play on
  24. lean — to rest against

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