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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. bear — the animal
  5. rash — a series
  6. bat — the animal
  7. cell — in biology
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. bear — the animal
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. charge — a price
  13. squash — to crush
  14. squash — the sport
  15. rash — hasty
  16. charge — electricity
  17. cell — a phone
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bark — to shout
  20. charge — in control
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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