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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: race · pit · roll · foot · chair · capital · chest · firm

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. race — humankind
  3. roll — a list
  4. roll — a cake
  5. pit — a hole
  6. race — a contest
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. race — the arms race
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pit — in a race
  11. capital — a city
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. firm — a company
  18. capital — money
  19. firm — decided
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. foot — a measure
  22. chair — a leader
  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