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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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468
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: cabinet · staff · lean · dip · bass · chest · stick · band

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bass — low music
  3. staff — employees
  4. band — a music group
  5. lean — thin
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. staff — a stick
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. chest — of your body
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. lean — to bend
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. staff — employees
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. dip — to sink
  22. band — a ring
  23. chest — a box
  24. bass — the fish

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