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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. chest — of your body
  3. field — for sport
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. degree — from a university
  6. craft — a skill
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. chest — of your body
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. craft — boats
  12. degree — temperature
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. field — a subject
  15. saw — the tool
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. field — farmland
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. degree — an amount
  20. saw — the tool
  21. chest — a box
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bowl — to roll

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