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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 120 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: rest · chest · wake · pound · fork · swing · patient · bulb

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. rest — a break
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. pound — a weight
  8. fork — in a road
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wake — a trail
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. swing — to play on
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. swing — in golf
  17. rest — what's left
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. swing — music
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bulb — for light
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. chest — a box
  24. bulb — of a plant

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