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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 · file · temple · spell · squash · hide · staff · wound

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. staff — employees
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. file — a document
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. spell — a short time
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. squash — the sport
  11. file — a line of people
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. spell — magic
  15. staff — a stick
  16. spell — letters
  17. chair — a leader
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. file — a tool
  20. staff — employees
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  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