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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. key — for a lock
  3. march — music
  4. squash — to crush
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — to handle
  9. last — to go on
  10. key — the most important part
  11. last — final
  12. last — finally
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. march — the month
  15. bulb — for light
  16. shower — to wash
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. march — the month
  19. key — in music
  20. squash — the sport
  21. rush — hurry
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bulb — for light

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