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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 · chip · mate · bat · wind · bass · coach · ruler

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. chest — a box
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bass — low music
  5. chip — to eat
  6. mate — a partner
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bass — the fish
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — for betting
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bat — the animal
  20. mate — a friend
  21. wind — moving air
  22. mate — to breed
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. chest — of your body

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