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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.

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: chest · bass · bore · chair · rock · net · file · object

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  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. file — a tool
  2. rock — music
  3. chest — of your body
  4. object — to protest
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. bore — to tire
  9. bore — to drill
  10. net — after costs
  11. bass — low music
  12. file — a line of people
  13. net — in sport
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. chair — a leader
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. bass — the fish
  18. chest — a box
  19. rock — a stone
  20. file — a document
  21. object — a thing
  22. net — for catching
  23. object — an aim
  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