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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 120 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 ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. swing — music
  5. squash — to crush
  6. rock — music
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. land — ground
  9. branch — a division
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rock — a stone
  12. squash — the sport
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. snap — to click
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. shower — rain
  18. land — to come down
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. shower — to wash
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — in golf
  23. land — a country
  24. vault — a safe

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