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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 120 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: stick · bay · chair · foot · saw · hand · bat · trunk

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. saw — the tool
  3. hand — help
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. saw — the tool
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chair — a leader
  17. foot — a measure
  18. bat — the animal
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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