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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: firm · mug · chest · kid · chair · hide · club · arm

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. firm — decided
  3. mug — to rob
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. club — a group
  6. mug — a face
  7. club — for golf
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. kid — to tease
  15. mug — a cup
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. firm — a company
  18. chest — of your body
  19. club — for dancing
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. chest — a box
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. firm — steady

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