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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: mark · pit · chair · chest · wound · wake · toast · jam

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chair — a leader
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wake — a trail
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. mark — a trace
  9. wound — an injury
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. mark — a grade
  13. pit — in a race
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. toast — bread
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. pit — a hole
  21. wound — an injury
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. chest — a box
  24. wake — before a funeral

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