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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: bore · field · chair · chest · bowl · cabinet · wake · kid

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. chest — of your body
  7. field — a subject
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wake — a trail
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. kid — to tease
  13. field — for sport
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. kid — child
  16. chair — a leader
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — to drill
  19. chest — a box
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. chest — of your body
  22. field — farmland
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. bowl — a football final

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