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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 · bound · court · wound · mark · season · chip · craft

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chip — to eat
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bound — certain
  5. chair — a leader
  6. mark — a grade
  7. court — for sport
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. mark — a trace
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. court — of law
  13. court — of a king
  14. wound — an injury
  15. season — of the year
  16. craft — a skill
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. craft — boats
  19. bound — tied together
  20. season — in sport
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. chip — for betting
  24. bound — obliged

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