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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chair · mug · tube · bass · spell · lash · pitch · squash

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. tube — a container
  5. bass — the fish
  6. mug — a face
  7. mug — a cup
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. spell — letters
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bass — low music
  12. spell — a short time
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — completely
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — the underground
  18. spell — magic
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. mug — to rob
  23. squash — to crush
  24. squash — the vegetable

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