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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. drill — a practice
  4. cap — a hat
  5. squash — the sport
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. wake — a trail
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. spring — of water
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. cap — a lid
  16. cap — of ice
  17. drill — army training
  18. spring — the season
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. spring — a coil
  23. drill — the tool
  24. squash — to crush

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