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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cap — a lid
  4. bass — low music
  5. squash — the sport
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. stock — shares
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. stock — goods
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wake — a trail
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. squash — to crush
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. cap — of ice
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bass — the fish
  24. wound — an injury

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