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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. file — a document
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. sharp — clever
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. mark — a grade
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. file — a tool
  12. craft — boats
  13. mark — a trace
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chest — of your body
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. rash — a series
  18. file — a line of people
  19. rash — hasty
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. craft — a skill
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. chest — a box

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