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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a hat
  5. chest — of your body
  6. drill — a practice
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. chest — a box
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. cap — a lid
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. pop — music
  14. craft — a skill
  15. pop — soda
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. pop — to visit
  18. drill — the tool
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. craft — boats
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. foot — a measure
  24. drill — army training

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