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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 120 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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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. squash — the vegetable
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. kid — to tease
  6. squash — to crush
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. net — after costs
  9. key — in music
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. squash — the sport
  12. key — the most important part
  13. last — finally
  14. plane — a tool
  15. net — in sport
  16. key — for a lock
  17. net — for catching
  18. chest — of your body
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — final
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. kid — child
  24. plane — in geometry

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