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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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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: craft · chest · staff · face · club · wound · shower · cabinet

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. staff — employees
  3. wound — an injury
  4. face — to confront
  5. wound — an injury
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. staff — employees
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. club — for dancing
  10. shower — to wash
  11. face — to point toward
  12. staff — a stick
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. craft — a skill
  16. club — a group
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. craft — boats
  19. club — for golf
  20. chest — a box
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. face — part of the head
  23. shower — rain
  24. chest — of your body

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