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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: cabinet · present · chair · chest · wound · bay · mine · lash

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. wound — an injury
  5. present — there
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. present — a gift
  10. chest — a box
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. wound — an injury
  15. chest — of your body
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. chair — a leader
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. chair — to sit on

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