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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.

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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. squash — to crush
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. squash — the sport
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — a practice
  11. wound — an injury
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. season — in sport
  14. drill — the tool
  15. spell — a short time
  16. season — of the year
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. wound — an injury
  19. spell — magic
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. spell — letters

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