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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 laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. cap — a hat
  3. march — the month
  4. swing — in golf
  5. squash — the sport
  6. staff — a stick
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. branch — a division
  10. swing — to play on
  11. march — the month
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. staff — employees
  15. march — music
  16. squash — to crush
  17. chest — a box
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. chest — of your body
  23. swing — music
  24. staff — employees

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