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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: drill · calf · kid · squash · key · chest · hand · wave

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. chest — a box
  4. squash — to crush
  5. key — the most important part
  6. kid — to tease
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. key — in music
  10. squash — the sport
  11. kid — child
  12. drill — army training
  13. hand — in cards
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — the tool
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. hand — help
  23. key — for a lock
  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