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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: nail · chair · club · lean · cap · leaves · chest · track

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. club — a group
  3. club — for golf
  4. chair — a leader
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. track — a song
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. track — to keep track
  9. club — for dancing
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. chest — of your body
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. lean — thin
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. cap — a lid
  17. lean — to bend
  18. cap — of ice
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. cap — a hat
  21. chest — a box
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. track — a path

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