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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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: saw · mug · hand · chest · track · chair · snap · hide

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. mug — a face
  3. chair — a leader
  4. track — a path
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chest — of your body
  7. mug — to rob
  8. saw — the tool
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. track — to keep track
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. chest — of your body
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. snap — to click
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. chest — a box
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. mug — a cup
  22. track — a song
  23. hand — in cards
  24. saw — the tool

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