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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. spring — a coil
  3. lean — to bend
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. spring — the season
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. drill — the tool
  8. spring — of water
  9. squash — to crush
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. drill — a practice
  13. fine — high quality
  14. lean — thin
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. sharp — clever
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. fine — all right
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. hand — in cards
  22. drill — army training
  23. hand — help
  24. sharp — exactly

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