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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: plane · track · rush · chest · drill · chair · wave · cell

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. track — a song
  5. cell — in biology
  6. rush — hurry
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. chest — a box
  10. cell — a phone
  11. chair — a leader
  12. drill — the tool
  13. track — to keep track
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. track — a path
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. drill — a practice
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — of your body
  24. drill — army training

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