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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. mate — a friend
  6. swing — to play on
  7. wound — an injury
  8. squash — the sport
  9. swing — music
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. rash — a series
  14. vault — a safe
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. mate — a partner
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. mate — to breed
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wound — an injury
  23. swing — in golf
  24. rash — hasty

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