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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. fine — all right
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — the sport
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pitch — completely
  12. fine — high quality
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. roll — a cake
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. capital — money
  17. shower — rain
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. tear — from crying
  21. roll — a list
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. shower — to wash
  24. tear — to rip

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