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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. pop — to visit
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. net — for catching
  5. saw — the tool
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. content — happy
  8. craft — boats
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. pop — music
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. pop — soda
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. saw — the tool
  17. net — after costs
  18. squash — the sport
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. lean — thin
  21. net — in sport
  22. content — the amount
  23. craft — a skill
  24. lean — to bend

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