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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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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: chair · drill · season · chip · craft · mine · shower · stock

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. mine — for digging
  3. shower — rain
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. drill — a practice
  6. season — of the year
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. drill — army training
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. chip — for betting
  13. stock — goods
  14. craft — a skill
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. shower — to wash
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. drill — the tool
  20. season — in sport
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. chip — to eat
  23. stock — shares
  24. craft — boats

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