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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 116 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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to tire
  7. season — in sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. drill — a practice
  12. squash — to crush
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — low music
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. drill — the tool
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. vault — a safe
  19. season — of the year
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. drill — army training
  23. bore — to drill
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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