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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: bass · squash · capital · clip · hide · deal · temple · chair

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. squash — to crush
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. capital — money
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bass — the fish
  10. squash — the sport
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. clip — to cut
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. deal — to handle
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — for paper
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. bass — low music
  23. chair — a leader
  24. temple — a place of worship

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