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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  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. game — wild animals
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. game — a match
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chest — of your body
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — to rip
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. march — the month
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. march — the month
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. march — music
  21. sharp — clever
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. game — a kind of play
  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