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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: kid · cabinet · racket · chest · club · staff · lean · bound

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. chest — of your body
  4. kid — child
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. staff — employees
  7. bound — obliged
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. lean — to bend
  10. club — for dancing
  11. staff — a stick
  12. bound — tied together
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. lean — thin
  16. staff — employees
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — a group
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bound — certain
  21. chest — a box
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. chest — of your body

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