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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: temple · chair · staff · ruler · straw · land · pound · row

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. land — ground
  3. row — to paddle
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. staff — a stick
  10. staff — employees
  11. land — to come down
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. land — a country
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. chair — a leader
  23. pound — a weight
  24. row — a line

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