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

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. pit — a hole
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. wax — to grow
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. rush — hurry
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. wind — moving air
  24. chair — to sit on

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