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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: chair · chip · rock · race · roll · lash · kid · wind

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. chair — a leader
  3. rock — a stone
  4. kid — to tease
  5. race — a contest
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. kid — child
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. roll — a list
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. race — the arms race
  15. chip — to eat
  16. wind — moving air
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. rock — music
  19. race — humankind
  20. chip — for betting
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. roll — a cake
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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