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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the sport
  3. stem — to come from
  4. row — to paddle
  5. rash — hasty
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. row — a line
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. charge — electricity
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. rash — a series
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. charge — in control
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. wake — a trail
  23. chair — a leader
  24. charge — a price

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