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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. suit — clothes
  3. bound — certain
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. club — for golf
  6. field — a subject
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. squash — the sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. suit — to fit
  16. suit — in cards
  17. bound — obliged
  18. club — for dancing
  19. bound — tied together
  20. club — a group
  21. snap — to click
  22. field — for sport
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. branch — a division

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