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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. branch — a division
  8. hand — help
  9. staff — a stick
  10. perch — the fish
  11. chip — to eat
  12. press — to push
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — a leader
  15. kid — child
  16. press — newspapers
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. chip — for betting
  21. press — a publisher
  22. staff — employees
  23. kid — to tease
  24. perch — for a bird

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