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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. squash — the sport
  3. drill — the tool
  4. rash — hasty
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. face — to point toward
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. drill — a practice
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. squash — to crush
  14. vault — a safe
  15. drill — army training
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. rash — a series
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. face — to confront
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. face — part of the head
  24. racket — a loud noise

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