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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: leaves · chest · chair · board · mark · ball · row · net

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. chest — of your body
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. net — in sport
  5. board — to get on
  6. chest — a box
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. ball — a dance
  9. chair — a leader
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. ball — a great time
  14. mark — a trace
  15. board — a committee
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. row — a line
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. net — for catching
  21. row — to paddle
  22. net — after costs
  23. mark — a grade
  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