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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · can · wind · chest · key · fan · chair · march

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. key — the most important part
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wind — moving air
  7. can — to be able to
  8. chest — a box
  9. can — a tin
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. key — in music
  14. can — a tin
  15. march — the month
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. chest — of your body
  19. march — the month
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. hand — help
  23. chair — a leader
  24. march — music

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