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

Word bank: chip · bay · pound · wind · bat · chair

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. pound — a weight
  9. chip — to eat
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. chair — a professorship

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