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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mug — a cup
  4. chest — of your body
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. mug — to rob
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. net — after costs
  9. foot — a measure
  10. stand — to bear
  11. craft — a skill
  12. craft — boats
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — in sport
  17. shower — to wash
  18. mug — a face
  19. shower — rain
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chest — a box
  24. craft — a handicraft

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