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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pop · rash · chest · field · rock · fork · cabinet · cold

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pop — music
  5. chest — a box
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. cold — not warm
  9. fork — in a road
  10. rash — hasty
  11. pop — to visit
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. field — for sport
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rash — a series
  17. chest — of your body
  18. field — farmland
  19. cold — an illness
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rock — music
  22. pop — soda
  23. field — a subject
  24. fork — a garden tool

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