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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: pit · chair · bat · net · chip · band · ball · roll

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. band — a ring
  3. bat — the animal
  4. chip — for betting
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. band — a music group
  7. roll — a cake
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. net — after costs
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. pit — a hole
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. net — for catching
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a great time
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chair — a leader
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pit — in a race
  22. roll — a list
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. net — in 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