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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. current — electric
  4. mark — a trace
  5. band — a ring
  6. squash — the sport
  7. wind — moving air
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. fine — all right
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. current — of water
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. band — a music group
  17. wind — moving air
  18. current — happening now
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. date — the fruit
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. squash — to crush
  23. fine — high quality
  24. mark — a grade

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