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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. field — a subject
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. firm — decided
  6. dip — to sink
  7. field — farmland
  8. drill — a practice
  9. field — for sport
  10. swing — in golf
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. rule — government
  13. firm — a company
  14. date — the fruit
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. firm — steady
  17. swing — to play on
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. drill — army training
  20. squash — the sport
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. swing — music
  23. drill — the tool
  24. rule — a law

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