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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. land — to come down
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. lie — to recline
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. bass — low music
  7. squash — to crush
  8. row — a line
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. ball — a great time
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. row — to paddle
  18. squash — the sport
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. land — a country
  22. bass — the fish
  23. march — the month
  24. land — ground

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