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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: bear · chest · track · nail · bulb · march · kick · arm

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. track — a song
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bulb — for light
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. chest — of your body
  9. march — the month
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. march — music
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bear — the animal
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. chest — a box
  16. bulb — for light
  17. march — the month
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. track — to keep track
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. track — a path
  24. kick — in football

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