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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. craft — a skill
  4. rest — what's left
  5. field — a subject
  6. race — the arms race
  7. craft — boats
  8. field — for sport
  9. face — part of the head
  10. face — to confront
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. rest — what's left
  13. swing — to play on
  14. chest — of your body
  15. swing — in golf
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. rest — a break
  18. race — humankind
  19. field — farmland
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. swing — music
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. race — a contest
  24. face — to point toward

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