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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. march — music
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. object — a thing
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. squash — to crush
  7. kid — child
  8. track — a path
  9. squash — the sport
  10. march — the month
  11. track — to keep track
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. object — to protest
  14. snap — to click
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. stock — shares
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. track — a song
  19. stock — goods
  20. object — an aim
  21. band — a music group
  22. march — the month
  23. kid — to tease
  24. band — a ring

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