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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. firm — steady
  5. field — a subject
  6. squash — the sport
  7. field — for sport
  8. hand — help
  9. field — farmland
  10. firm — decided
  11. hand — in cards
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. dip — to sink
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. firm — a company
  23. pit — a hole
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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