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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.

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: chair · temple · wound · spell · pitcher · cue · chip · net

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. spell — letters
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. spell — magic
  7. net — for catching
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. cue — a hint
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. wound — an injury
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. chip — to eat
  14. spell — a short time
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. cue — for pool
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. wound — an injury
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — in sport
  22. chip — for betting
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. chair — a leader

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