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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: rest · pit · can · calf · cold · chest · pitcher · net

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. chest — a box
  3. can — to be able to
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. chest — of your body
  6. can — a tin
  7. rest — what's left
  8. cold — not warm
  9. net — after costs
  10. can — a tin
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. cold — an illness
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pit — a hole
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. rest — a break
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. net — for catching
  22. pit — in a race
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. net — in sport

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