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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: chest · wax · key · chair · stand · cell

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. key — in music
  3. key — the most important part
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. cell — a phone
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chair — a leader
  10. key — for a lock
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cell — in biology
  15. stand — to bear
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. wax — to grow

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