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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. chest — of your body
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. craft — boats
  6. toast — bread
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. rash — a series
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. craft — a skill
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. chest — a box
  20. pitch — completely
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rash — on the skin

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