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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · bass · object · kick · chest · field

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bass — the fish
  3. rule — government
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. kick — in football
  7. field — a subject
  8. bass — low music
  9. field — for sport
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rule — a law
  12. object — an aim
  13. object — to protest
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. chest — a box
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. field — farmland
  18. object — a thing

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