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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. face — part of the head
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. cold — not warm
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. squash — the sport
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bark — to shout
  10. mine — for digging
  11. face — to point toward
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. face — to confront
  24. mine — an explosive

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