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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 116 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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. march — music
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. march — the month
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. rush — hurry
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. march — the month
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. squash — to crush
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — in cards
  16. cold — not warm
  17. squash — the sport
  18. rush — to hurry

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