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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: kid · bark · squash · land · firm · chair · rash · scale

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. land — to come down
  3. squash — to crush
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. land — ground
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. chair — a leader
  9. firm — steady
  10. scale — size or range
  11. firm — decided
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. land — a country
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. scale — in music
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. kid — to tease
  18. rash — hasty
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. firm — a company
  21. kid — child
  22. bark — to shout
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rash — a series

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