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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. staff — employees
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. scale — size or range
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. net — in sport
  7. row — a line
  8. scale — in music
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. staff — employees
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. swing — to play on
  14. date — the fruit
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the sport
  23. staff — a stick
  24. row — to paddle

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