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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: hide · chair · dip · race · hand · snap · stand · squash

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. snap — to click
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. dip — to sink
  7. squash — the sport
  8. hand — in cards
  9. stand — to bear
  10. hand — help
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. race — humankind
  14. race — a contest
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. squash — to crush
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. race — the arms race
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. chair — a leader
  24. chair — to sit on

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