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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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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: foot · wave · mark · fine · saw · court · present · chest

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. fine — high quality
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. present — there
  6. mark — a grade
  7. fine — all right
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. court — for sport
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. court — of a king
  14. mark — a trace
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. present — the time now
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. present — a gift
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. foot — a measure
  24. court — of law

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