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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 120 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: club · swing · stand · bore · cell · chest · leaves · fall

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bore — to drill
  4. chest — a box
  5. fall — the season
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. chest — of your body
  8. swing — music
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bore — to tire
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. fall — to drop
  13. club — for golf
  14. cell — in biology
  15. club — for dancing
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. swing — to play on
  18. fall — to drop
  19. club — a group
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. stand — to bear
  23. swing — in golf
  24. leaves — lets stay

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