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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. land — ground
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. squash — the sport
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. toast — bread
  11. bear — the animal
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. saw — the tool
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. bear — the animal
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. land — a country
  20. land — to come down
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. saw — the tool
  23. hand — in cards
  24. hand — help

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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