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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. rest — what's left
  3. chest — a box
  4. rest — what's left
  5. wind — moving air
  6. chest — of your body
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fork — in a road
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. rest — a break
  19. tear — to rip
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. craft — boats
  22. craft — a skill
  23. cold — not warm
  24. tear — from crying

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