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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 116 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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. rash — hasty
  3. kid — child
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. can — to be able to
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — to recline
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. sharp — clever
  16. can — a tin
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. branch — a division
  19. kid — to tease
  20. rash — a series
  21. can — a tin
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. squash — to crush

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