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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 · track · court · saw · craft · band · squash · jam

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. court — of a king
  3. band — a music group
  4. saw — the tool
  5. band — a ring
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. track — to keep track
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a skill
  10. squash — to crush
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. track — a path
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. track — a song
  15. chest — a box
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of law
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. squash — the sport
  24. squash — the vegetable

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