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

Word bank: scale · bore · march · chest · swing · root · pit · stick

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. root — of a plant
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bore — to drill
  5. march — the month
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. chest — a box
  9. march — music
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. pit — in a race
  12. swing — to play on
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. root — the cause
  16. scale — in music
  17. scale — size or range
  18. root — of a word
  19. swing — in golf
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. swing — music
  22. chest — of your body
  23. march — the month
  24. pit — a hole

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