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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: chair · pound · scale · kid · wax · rock · chest · chip

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. kid — child
  3. chair — a leader
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. scale — in music
  6. chest — a box
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. rock — music
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. pound — a weight
  13. chip — to eat
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chest — of your body
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. wax — to grow
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. kid — to tease
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rock — a stone
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. chest — of your body

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