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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 · cue · jam · rule · bat · object · mine · board

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  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. object — an aim
  2. cue — a signal
  3. board — to get on
  4. object — a thing
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. board — a committee
  7. chest — of your body
  8. cue — for pool
  9. mine — for digging
  10. rule — a law
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. rule — government
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. object — to protest
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. cue — a hint
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. chest — a box
  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