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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 · key · arm · field · rash · lie · pitcher · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. rash — a series
  3. key — in music
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. lie — to recline
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. field — a subject
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. field — farmland
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. key — for a lock
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. key — the most important part
  21. field — for sport
  22. toast — bread
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. rash — hasty

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