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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: cell · coach · chip · cue · chair · chest · club · nail

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. club — for golf
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cell — in biology
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chest — a box
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. chip — to eat
  11. cell — a phone
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. cue — a hint
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. club — for dancing
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cue — for pool
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. club — a group
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. chip — for betting
  24. cue — a signal

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