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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. shower — rain
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — of your body
  5. craft — a skill
  6. shower — to wash
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. rest — what's left
  10. saw — the tool
  11. craft — boats
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a tool
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — the animal
  19. saw — the tool
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stand — to bear
  22. chest — a box
  23. rest — a break
  24. file — a document

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