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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: wax · court · foot · cell · firm · chair · bat · chip

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. firm — steady
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. chip — for betting
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. court — for sport
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. firm — a company
  10. court — of law
  11. chip — to eat
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. chair — a leader
  16. wax — to grow
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. bat — the animal
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. cell — in biology
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. court — of a king
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. firm — decided

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