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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 120 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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. tube — the underground
  5. chip — to eat
  6. row — to paddle
  7. mate — a friend
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. chip — for betting
  11. net — for catching
  12. tube — a container
  13. stock — goods
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. mate — a partner
  17. stock — shares
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. row — a line
  21. mate — to breed
  22. net — in sport
  23. squash — the sport
  24. net — after costs

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