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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. squash — to crush
  3. kid — to tease
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. kid — child
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. rock — a stone
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bat — the animal
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. deal — to handle
  22. squash — the sport
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. pitcher — a jug

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