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

Word bank: chair · pass · ball · chest · wind · club

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pass — a permit
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chest — a box
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chair — a leader
  8. wind — moving air
  9. club — for golf
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. club — for dancing
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. club — a group
  17. ball — a great time
  18. ball — a dance

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