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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 · staff · craft · tear · can · mark · stick · field

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. chest — of your body
  3. craft — boats
  4. staff — a stick
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. chest — of your body
  7. field — a subject
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. mark — a trace
  10. can — a tin
  11. tear — from crying
  12. craft — a skill
  13. can — to be able to
  14. staff — employees
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. field — farmland
  20. staff — employees
  21. mark — a grade
  22. chest — a box
  23. field — for sport
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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