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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — the tool
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. game — a match
  10. track — to keep track
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a partner
  13. squash — to crush
  14. tear — to rip
  15. drill — army training
  16. squash — the sport
  17. mate — a friend
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. track — a song
  20. tear — from crying
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. track — a path
  23. game — wild animals
  24. tear — from crying

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