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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. squash — the sport
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. squash — to crush
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mug — a face
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. wind — moving air
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. mine — for digging
  16. wind — moving air
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. mug — a cup
  20. roll — a cake
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. roll — a list
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. mug — to rob

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