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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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. trunk — of a car
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. spell — a short time
  7. mine — for digging
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. kid — child
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. face — to point toward
  13. root — of a plant
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to confront
  16. kid — to tease
  17. spell — magic
  18. root — of a word
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. root — the cause
  22. spell — letters
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

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