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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: chest · chair · sharp · bound · staff · cap · club · ball

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. staff — employees
  3. bound — tied together
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — a box
  7. sharp — clever
  8. staff — a stick
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bound — obliged
  12. cap — a hat
  13. staff — employees
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cap — a lid
  19. bound — certain
  20. club — for dancing
  21. cap — of ice
  22. club — for golf
  23. club — a group
  24. sharp — with an edge

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