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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: chest · toast · staff · hand · date · firm · kid · plane

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. firm — steady
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. toast — bread
  6. hand — in cards
  7. plane — a tool
  8. hand — help
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. chest — of your body
  13. firm — decided
  14. staff — employees
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. date — the fruit
  17. staff — employees
  18. firm — a company
  19. staff — a stick
  20. chest — of your body
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. kid — child

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