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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: chest · firm · lie · row · craft · pit · band · game

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. chest — of your body
  3. row — a line
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — to recline
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. craft — boats
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. firm — decided
  10. chest — of your body
  11. band — a ring
  12. game — wild animals
  13. row — to paddle
  14. band — a music group
  15. craft — a skill
  16. firm — a company
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. game — a match
  21. firm — steady
  22. pit — a hole
  23. chest — a box
  24. pit — in a race

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