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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: racket · field · bark · chest · chip · jam · pop · key

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. field — a subject
  3. pop — to visit
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. key — the most important part
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pop — soda
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. chip — for betting
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. key — in music
  13. field — for sport
  14. chest — a box
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. field — farmland
  17. key — for a lock
  18. bark — to shout
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. chip — to eat
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. pop — music

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