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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: net · bowl · face · wake · staff · chip · foot · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. net — after costs
  3. face — part of the head
  4. chip — to eat
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. foot — a measure
  7. net — in sport
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. chair — a leader
  10. staff — a stick
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — employees
  17. face — to confront
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. net — for catching
  20. wake — a trail
  21. face — to point toward
  22. chip — for betting
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. bowl — a football final

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