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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 120 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 broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. chest — of your body
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. craft — a skill
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. rash — hasty
  7. club — for dancing
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. club — for golf
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. kid — child
  15. craft — boats
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. kid — to tease
  18. pass — a permit
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — a series
  21. branch — a division
  22. club — a group
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. chest — a box

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