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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: dip · hand · chest · snap · band · chip · spring · chair

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. dip — to sink
  3. hand — help
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. chip — for betting
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. chair — a leader
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. chest — a box
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. hand — in cards
  12. spring — a coil
  13. chest — of your body
  14. band — a ring
  15. spring — of water
  16. snap — to click
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. chip — to eat
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. spring — the season
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a music group
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chair — a professorship

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