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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. rest — a break
  3. rash — hasty
  4. race — humankind
  5. craft — a skill
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. rest — what's left
  8. race — the arms race
  9. sharp — clever
  10. stock — shares
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. squash — the sport
  16. race — a contest
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rash — a series
  20. stock — goods
  21. rest — what's left
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. craft — boats

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