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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. court — for sport
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. mine — for digging
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ground — a position
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. ground — crushed
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. court — of law
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. squash — the sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. ruler — for measuring

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