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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: face · craft · rest · fine · cue · drill · chest · bat

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. face — to point toward
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. cue — for pool
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. craft — a skill
  7. rest — a break
  8. cue — a signal
  9. face — part of the head
  10. rest — what's left
  11. drill — army training
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. rest — what's left
  16. cue — a hint
  17. face — to confront
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. fine — high quality
  20. drill — the tool
  21. craft — boats
  22. chest — a box
  23. bat — the animal
  24. drill — a practice

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