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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: snap · chest · hide · wind · chair · board

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. chest — a box
  3. board — a committee
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wind — moving air
  10. board — to get on
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. chair — a leader
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. snap — to click
  17. wind — moving air
  18. hide — to keep secret

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