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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 116 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: lash · stick · chair · cell · saw · dip · board · rest

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. chair — a leader
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. cell — a phone
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. rest — a break
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. rest — what's left
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. rest — what's left
  17. saw — the tool
  18. dip — to sink
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. cell — in biology
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. board — to get on
  24. board — a committee

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