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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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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: chest · wax · mouse · wound · sharp · net · lean · lie

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — thin
  10. net — for catching
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. lie — to recline
  15. wax — to grow
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. sharp — clever
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. chest — a box
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — in sport
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. mouse — the animal

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