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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: plane · chair · dip · pitcher · stick · hand · squash · degree

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. hand — help
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. squash — to crush
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. chair — a leader
  15. hand — in cards
  16. degree — temperature
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. plane — a tool
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. dip — to sink
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — an amount

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