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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: chair · fine · key · wound · rest · bat · straw · tube

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. rest — what's left
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. key — the most important part
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. tube — a container
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. key — for a lock
  11. chair — a leader
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — high quality
  14. fine — all right
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bat — the animal
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. key — in music
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. rest — a break
  22. tube — the underground
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. tube — in a tire

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