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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: date · chair · cue · can · wind · row · chest · arm

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  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. chair — a leader
  2. cue — for pool
  3. date — the fruit
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. can — to be able to
  8. cue — a signal
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. row — a line
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. wind — moving air
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chest — a box
  17. can — a tin
  18. cue — a hint
  19. can — a tin
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. row — to paddle
  22. chest — of your body
  23. wind — moving air
  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