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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: rest · key · cell · cabinet · bound · chair · kid · lash

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. cell — a phone
  5. kid — child
  6. key — the most important part
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. bound — tied together
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. bound — certain
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. key — for a lock
  17. rest — a break
  18. chair — a leader
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bound — obliged
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. key — in music
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — what's left

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