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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: rush · net · pop · file · club · chair · leaves · chest

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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. leaves — lets stay
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. file — a tool
  6. club — for dancing
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. pop — soda
  11. net — in sport
  12. chest — of your body
  13. file — a line of people
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. club — for golf
  16. net — after costs
  17. club — a group
  18. rush — hurry
  19. chest — a box
  20. net — for catching
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. file — a document

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