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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: cap · chair · stand · chip · pass · net · rest · game

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chip — for betting
  4. rest — what's left
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. rest — a break
  7. pass — a permit
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. rest — what's left
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. net — in sport
  15. cap — a hat
  16. stand — to bear
  17. net — after costs
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cap — of ice
  20. game — a match
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. game — wild animals
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. chip — in a computer

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