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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: temple · chair · lie · date · squash · bat · roll · rash

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. roll — a cake
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. chair — a leader
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. squash — the sport
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — the animal
  15. date — the fruit
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. roll — a list
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. lie — to recline
  20. rash — a series
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. squash — to crush
  23. rash — on the skin
  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