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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the sport
  6. file — a document
  7. wound — an injury
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. mate — a partner
  13. stock — goods
  14. wound — an injury
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. band — a music group
  21. stock — shares
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mate — to breed
  24. band — a ring

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