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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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468
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: spring · chair · foot · chest · ground · arm · roll · club

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. roll — a list
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. foot — a measure
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. spring — a coil
  8. club — for golf
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. chest — a box
  11. roll — a cake
  12. ground — a position
  13. club — for dancing
  14. club — a group
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. ground — crushed
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. spring — the season
  19. ground — the earth
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. chest — of your body
  24. spring — of water

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