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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: mug · mine · chair · nail · chest · rash · arm · race

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. chest — a box
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. mug — a face
  7. mug — to rob
  8. rash — hasty
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. race — humankind
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mug — a cup
  14. race — the arms race
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chair — a leader
  19. rash — a series
  20. race — a contest
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. mine — for digging
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. chest — of your body

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