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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: roll · stock · chest · toast · cap · face · march · can

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. can — to be able to
  3. face — to confront
  4. chest — a box
  5. can — a tin
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. cap — of ice
  8. chest — of your body
  9. face — part of the head
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. march — the month
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. cap — a hat
  15. roll — a cake
  16. can — a tin
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. march — the month
  19. cap — a lid
  20. face — to point toward
  21. roll — a list
  22. stock — shares
  23. march — music
  24. toast — bread

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