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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. chest — of your body
  3. can — a tin
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. roll — a cake
  6. chest — a box
  7. object — an aim
  8. chest — of your body
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. band — a music group
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — for sport
  13. present — the time now
  14. can — a tin
  15. object — a thing
  16. present — a gift
  17. present — there
  18. can — to be able to
  19. object — to protest
  20. roll — a list
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. craft — boats
  23. field — a subject
  24. band — a ring

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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