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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: band · fine · bat · key · chip · rush · chest · kid

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. band — a music group
  4. rush — hurry
  5. chest — a box
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chest — of your body
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. key — the most important part
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. kid — to tease
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. key — in music
  15. key — for a lock
  16. band — a ring
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bat — the animal
  20. kid — child
  21. chip — to eat
  22. chip — for betting
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. fine — all right

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