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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. spring — a coil
  3. chest — a box
  4. spring — of water
  5. branch — a division
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — farmland
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. field — for sport
  11. row — a line
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — for dancing
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — to tire
  21. spring — the season
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. club — a group

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