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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. swing — music
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. field — farmland
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. field — for sport
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. field — a subject
  10. spring — the season
  11. rock — music
  12. mate — a friend
  13. swing — in golf
  14. swing — to play on
  15. spring — of water
  16. mate — a partner
  17. spring — a coil
  18. mate — to breed
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. chest — of your body
  22. date — the fruit
  23. chest — of your body
  24. rock — a stone

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