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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. squash — the sport
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — rain
  10. pit — in a race
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. bat — the animal
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. pit — a hole
  15. season — in sport
  16. shower — to wash
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. season — of the year
  21. wind — moving air
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. ball — a great time
  24. wind — moving air

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