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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: foot · net · saw · wind · tear · hide · chest · chair

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. chest — a box
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. tear — from crying
  5. foot — a measure
  6. net — after costs
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. chest — of your body
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. saw — the tool
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. net — in sport
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. chair — a leader
  18. net — for catching
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. saw — the tool
  22. chest — of your body
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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