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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 · mate · fall · cue · lie · wake · spring · foot

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  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. foot — a measure
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fall — to drop
  4. spring — the season
  5. cue — a hint
  6. fall — to drop
  7. mate — a partner
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a friend
  13. chest — a box
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. fall — the season
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — a trail
  18. spring — a coil
  19. cue — for pool
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. spring — of water
  23. cue — a signal
  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