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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: kid · chip · trunk · firm · chair · drill · court · chest

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. firm — a company
  4. chip — to eat
  5. chair — a leader
  6. firm — steady
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. drill — a practice
  9. kid — child
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. court — of a king
  17. chest — a box
  18. chip — for betting
  19. firm — decided
  20. court — of law
  21. drill — army training
  22. drill — the tool
  23. kid — to tease
  24. court — for sport

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