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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. rush — hurry
  4. land — ground
  5. squash — the sport
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. lean — thin
  9. mark — a trace
  10. land — to come down
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. lean — to bend
  14. squash — to crush
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. bark — to shout
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mark — a grade
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. land — a country
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. rush — a thrill

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