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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Word bank
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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: capital · key · chair · chest · rash · kick

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. chest — of your body
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. rash — hasty
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chest — a box
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. capital — a city
  10. chest — of your body
  11. key — in music
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — in football
  14. key — for a lock
  15. rash — a series
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — money
  18. chair — a leader

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