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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: bat · staff · squash · shower · stock · object · chair · chip

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. chip — for betting
  3. staff — employees
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. squash — to crush
  7. object — to protest
  8. staff — employees
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. shower — to wash
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. squash — the sport
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. object — an aim
  18. shower — rain
  19. chip — to eat
  20. stock — goods
  21. staff — a stick
  22. object — a thing
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. chair — a leader

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