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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: rest · rash · lash · chair · bat · cue · lie · coach

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. rest — what's left
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. cue — a signal
  13. chair — a leader
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. rash — hasty
  16. rash — a series
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. lie — to recline
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. cue — for pool
  23. rest — a break
  24. lie — an untruth

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