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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. stand — to bear
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. squash — to crush
  5. wound — an injury
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. branch — a division
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tube — a container
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. squash — the sport
  13. tube — the underground
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. plane — a tool
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wake — a trail
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. plane — an aircraft

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