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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. mug — a face
  5. rest — what's left
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. mug — a cup
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. march — music
  10. rest — a break
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. rest — what's left
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. chest — a box
  16. mark — a grade
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. chair — a leader

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