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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. craft — boats
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. pop — music
  7. net — for catching
  8. cold — not warm
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. can — a tin
  11. net — after costs
  12. pop — soda
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. net — in sport
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. cold — an illness
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. can — to be able to
  21. craft — a skill
  22. pop — to visit
  23. chest — a box
  24. can — a tin

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