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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: rock · craft · ground · kid · face · bass · chest · chair

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. bass — low music
  4. craft — a skill
  5. ground — the earth
  6. chest — of your body
  7. kid — child
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. bass — the fish
  11. ground — crushed
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. face — to point toward
  16. face — to confront
  17. chair — a leader
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. face — part of the head
  20. kid — to tease
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. rock — a stone
  23. craft — boats
  24. rock — 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