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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 120 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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. squash — the sport
  3. mug — a cup
  4. squash — to crush
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pitch — completely
  8. row — to paddle
  9. mug — a face
  10. row — a line
  11. season — in sport
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. season — of the year
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. hand — in cards
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. mug — to rob
  23. snap — to click
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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