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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. squash — to crush
  4. net — for catching
  5. mate — a friend
  6. net — after costs
  7. kid — child
  8. mate — to breed
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. bass — the fish
  15. roll — a cake
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. bass — low music
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. roll — a list
  21. deal — to handle
  22. net — in sport
  23. squash — the sport
  24. mate — a partner

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