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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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Word bank
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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: kid · craft · mouse · chip · toast · chair

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. craft — boats
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. toast — bread
  8. craft — a skill
  9. kid — to tease
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. kid — child
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. chip — for betting
  18. toast — the most admired

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