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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. drill — a practice
  4. mug — to rob
  5. rest — a break
  6. track — to keep track
  7. mug — a cup
  8. squash — the sport
  9. track — a song
  10. drill — army training
  11. mug — a face
  12. drill — the tool
  13. clip — to cut
  14. clip — a video
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. clip — for paper
  17. rest — what's left
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. track — a path
  22. mine — for digging
  23. rest — what's left
  24. pitch — completely

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