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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. saw — the tool
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bank — of a river
  5. chair — a leader
  6. board — a committee
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. board — to get on
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. bank — for money
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — a box
  17. wax — to grow
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. fork — in a road
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bank — for money

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