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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. spell — a short time
  3. spell — magic
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. band — a music group
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. pit — in a race
  9. tear — from crying
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. tear — from crying
  12. scale — size or range
  13. rock — a stone
  14. spell — letters
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — for catching
  18. rock — music
  19. net — after costs
  20. squash — the sport
  21. tear — to rip
  22. scale — in music
  23. band — a ring
  24. scale — for weighing

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