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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: foot · wound · date · march · chest · rest · mark · craft

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. date — the fruit
  5. march — the month
  6. craft — a skill
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. craft — boats
  10. foot — a measure
  11. march — music
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. rest — what's left
  14. mark — a grade
  15. rest — a break
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. wound — an injury
  19. march — the month
  20. rest — what's left
  21. mark — a trace
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — a box

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