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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 120 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — the time now
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. kid — to tease
  7. rash — a series
  8. squash — to crush
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. present — there
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. squash — the sport
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. rash — hasty
  15. wind — moving air
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. wind — moving air
  18. kid — child

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