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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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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: spell · dip · straw · chest · chair · march · leaves · club

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chair — a leader
  5. dip — to sink
  6. club — for golf
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chest — a box
  12. spell — letters
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. march — the month
  15. club — a group
  16. spell — magic
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. spell — a short time
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. march — music
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. march — the month

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