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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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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: march · key · kid · craft · nail · chest · temple · field

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. field — farmland
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. chest — of your body
  6. key — the most important part
  7. craft — boats
  8. march — music
  9. craft — a skill
  10. key — in music
  11. kid — to tease
  12. field — for sport
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. key — for a lock
  15. march — the month
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kid — child
  20. field — a subject
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. march — the month

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