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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 116 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: trunk · wave · wax · press · chip · chair · kid · present

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. chip — for betting
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. wax — to grow
  5. kid — child
  6. press — newspapers
  7. chair — a leader
  8. press — a publisher
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. present — the time now
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. present — a gift
  15. press — to push
  16. kid — to tease
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. chip — to eat
  24. trunk — of a tree

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