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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  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. chest — of your body
  2. rest — a break
  3. squash — the sport
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. craft — boats
  12. fine — high quality
  13. craft — a skill
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fine — all right
  18. rest — what's left
  19. chest — of your body
  20. squash — to crush
  21. wound — an injury
  22. date — the fruit
  23. pound — a weight
  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