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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 120 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: sharp · chest · racket · craft · pop · tear · face · chair

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. sharp — clever
  5. pop — to visit
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pop — soda
  8. face — to confront
  9. tear — from crying
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chest — of your body
  12. face — part of the head
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pop — music
  15. craft — boats
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. face — to point toward
  21. craft — a skill
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. chest — a box
  24. chair — a professorship

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