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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. chest — of your body
  3. drill — a practice
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. season — of the year
  6. drill — the tool
  7. chest — a box
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. craft — a skill
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. craft — boats
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. chest — of your body
  16. drill — army training
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. season — in sport

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