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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: swing · pitch · bat · staff · chest · rock · chair · lie

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. chest — a box
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — the animal
  7. staff — a stick
  8. lie — to recline
  9. chair — a leader
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. swing — to play on
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rock — a stone
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. staff — employees
  18. rock — music
  19. swing — in golf
  20. staff — employees
  21. swing — music
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. pitch — completely

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