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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. kick — in football
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — hurry
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. squash — the sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. net — for catching
  16. bat — the animal
  17. net — in sport
  18. last — finally
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — a permit
  22. squash — to crush
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. bear — the animal

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