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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: date · hand · squash · rule · staff · chair · fan · bat

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. squash — to crush
  3. squash — the sport
  4. rule — government
  5. hand — help
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. staff — a stick
  10. rule — a law
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. staff — employees
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. staff — employees
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. date — the fruit
  20. chair — a leader
  21. bat — the animal
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. bat — in an idiom

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