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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  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. mine — belonging to me
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. mine — for digging
  7. rest — what's left
  8. squash — to crush
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. wound — an injury
  11. fork — in a road
  12. rock — a stone
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. rest — a break
  15. rest — what's left
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. squash — the sport
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. rock — music
  22. perch — the fish
  23. date — the fruit
  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