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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. chest — of your body
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. chest — a box
  5. net — for catching
  6. rash — hasty
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. march — the month
  9. rash — a series
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. scale — in music
  12. bound — obliged
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. march — the month
  15. net — after costs
  16. bound — certain
  17. scale — size or range
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. bound — tied together
  23. chest — of your body
  24. march — music

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