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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. land — ground
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bore — to tire
  9. land — a country
  10. chip — to eat
  11. roll — a cake
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. snap — to click
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chip — for betting
  17. land — to come down
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bore — to drill
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. roll — a list
  24. roll — on a roll

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