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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. squash — the sport
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. hand — help
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hand — in cards
  10. drill — a practice
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. rash — a series
  15. rock — music
  16. rash — hasty
  17. squash — to crush
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. drill — army training
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. drill — the tool
  24. march — the month

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