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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. chair — a leader
  3. race — the arms race
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. race — a contest
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. court — of law
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. court — for sport
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. court — of a king
  20. cold — not warm
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. cold — an illness
  23. race — humankind
  24. chip — for betting

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