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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. march — music
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. march — the month
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. squash — to crush
  12. firm — a company
  13. file — a document
  14. march — the month
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. firm — steady
  17. file — a line of people
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. chest — a box
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. file — a tool
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. squash — the sport
  24. chest — of your body

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