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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. rash — a series
  3. spell — letters
  4. spell — magic
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. squash — to crush
  7. mark — a grade
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. cap — of ice
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — a hat
  13. rash — hasty
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — humankind
  16. spell — a short time
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. race — a contest
  20. mark — a trace
  21. branch — a division
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. branch — of a tree

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