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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bulb — for light
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. squash — to crush
  6. file — a line of people
  7. fall — to drop
  8. kid — child
  9. plane — a tool
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. fall — the season
  12. track — to keep track
  13. rest — a break
  14. squash — the sport
  15. rest — what's left
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bulb — for light
  18. track — a path
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. kid — to tease
  21. fall — to drop
  22. track — a song
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a document

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