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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 · rest · stand · suit · court · cell

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. chest — a box
  3. suit — to fit
  4. cell — a phone
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of a king
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. suit — clothes
  13. rest — what's left
  14. cell — in biology
  15. rest — what's left
  16. suit — in cards
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. rest — a break

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