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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. file — a document
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. land — ground
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. squash — the sport
  7. content — happy
  8. content — the amount
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. squash — to crush
  11. perch — the fish
  12. file — a line of people
  13. lean — thin
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. lean — to bend
  18. file — a tool
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. land — a country
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. land — to come down

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