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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. chair — a leader
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. chest — of your body
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. chip — to eat
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. chest — a box
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. chair — to sit on

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