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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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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: foot · cell · scale · fork · chair · bat · row · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. cell — in biology
  4. fork — in a road
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. bat — the animal
  13. scale — size or range
  14. row — to paddle
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. row — a line
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. scale — in music
  20. foot — a measure
  21. chair — a leader
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. chest — a box
  24. chest — of your body

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