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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 · kid · vault · trunk · hide · file · wind · club

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. file — a line of people
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. club — for golf
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. vault — a safe
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a tool
  12. club — a group
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. chair — a leader
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. club — for dancing
  24. kid — to tease

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