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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 116 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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. face — to confront
  3. squash — the sport
  4. land — ground
  5. squash — to crush
  6. land — to come down
  7. bark — to shout
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. craft — a skill
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. craft — boats
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to click
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a path
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. face — part of the head
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. track — a song
  22. face — to point toward
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. land — a country

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