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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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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: toast · cabinet · march · pitch · hand · chest · press · wax

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — to push
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. march — the month
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. march — the month
  9. pitch — completely
  10. wax — to grow
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. chest — a box
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. march — music
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. press — newspapers
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. toast — bread
  23. hand — help
  24. hand — in cards

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