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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: field · mark · wound · fan · date · chip · chest · mouse

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mark — a trace
  3. field — a subject
  4. wound — an injury
  5. field — farmland
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. chest — of your body
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — to eat
  16. field — for sport
  17. date — the fruit
  18. chest — a box
  19. wound — an injury
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. chip — for betting

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