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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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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 · foot · chair · dip · firm · lash · rule · capital

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. rule — government
  5. chair — a leader
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. foot — a measure
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. firm — steady
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. firm — decided
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. capital — a city
  15. chest — a box
  16. rule — a law
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. capital — money
  19. chest — of your body
  20. firm — a company
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. dip — to sink
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. dip — to dunk

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