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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: field · date · arm · deal · rest · chest · tube · cabinet

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. chest — of your body
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. date — the fruit
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. chest — of your body
  9. deal — to handle
  10. tube — a container
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tube — the underground
  14. field — for sport
  15. rest — what's left
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. chest — a box
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. rest — what's left
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. field — a subject
  23. rest — a break
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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