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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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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: mug · straw · root · fan · cell · chest · chair · game

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. mug — to rob
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. chest — of your body
  8. cell — in biology
  9. root — of a word
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. root — the cause
  12. cell — a phone
  13. game — wild animals
  14. mug — a cup
  15. root — of a plant
  16. chest — of your body
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. mug — a face
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chest — a box
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. game — a match

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