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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. roll — a list
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. bat — the animal
  9. roll — a cake
  10. tear — from crying
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pop — music
  14. lean — thin
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. lean — to bend
  17. pop — soda
  18. squash — to crush
  19. tear — to rip
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. squash — the sport
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pop — to visit
  24. face — to confront

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