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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: chair · drill · swing · pitch · chest · file · court · row

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. court — of law
  3. row — a line
  4. swing — in golf
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. file — a line of people
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. drill — army training
  11. swing — music
  12. drill — a practice
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. court — of a king
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. chair — a leader
  18. row — to paddle
  19. file — a document
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. drill — the tool
  22. chest — of your body
  23. file — a tool
  24. court — for sport

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