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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. firm — a company
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. branch — a division
  7. field — for sport
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. firm — decided
  10. pass — a permit
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — a subject
  13. kid — child
  14. firm — steady
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bulb — for light
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. chest — a box
  23. bulb — for light
  24. kid — to tease

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