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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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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: wave · cold · squash · fine · chip · chair · press · perch

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. cold — not warm
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. chip — to eat
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fine — all right
  12. squash — the sport
  13. perch — the fish
  14. press — a publisher
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. press — newspapers
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. cold — an illness
  21. chip — for betting
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. squash — to crush
  24. press — to push

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