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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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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. cue — a signal
  4. cue — a hint
  5. chest — of your body
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. charge — in control
  8. file — a document
  9. rest — a break
  10. charge — electricity
  11. dip — to sink
  12. chest — of your body
  13. land — to come down
  14. charge — a price
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. file — a tool
  17. land — ground
  18. file — a line of people
  19. cue — for pool
  20. land — a country
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. chair — a leader
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — what's left

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