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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: plane · race · lie · swing · chair · mug · chest · ball

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lie — to recline
  5. chest — of your body
  6. plane — a tool
  7. swing — in golf
  8. race — the arms race
  9. ball — a dance
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. mug — a face
  12. race — a contest
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. swing — music
  16. mug — to rob
  17. swing — to play on
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. chest — a box
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. chair — a leader
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. chest — of your body
  24. mug — a cup

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