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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. club — for dancing
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. club — for golf
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. dip — to sink
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. club — a group
  9. charge — a price
  10. chair — a leader
  11. charge — in control
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. chest — a box
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. cell — in biology
  18. charge — electricity
  19. cell — a phone
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. nail — on a finger

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