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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: deal · chair · rash · shower · net · key · safe · chest

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. shower — to wash
  3. net — for catching
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. rash — a series
  6. net — after costs
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. rash — hasty
  10. key — for a lock
  11. key — the most important part
  12. chest — of your body
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. chest — of your body
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. shower — rain
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. deal — to handle
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. chest — a box
  21. net — in sport
  22. key — in music
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. chair — a leader

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