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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. squash — to crush
  3. vault — a safe
  4. tear — from crying
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. track — a song
  7. track — a path
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. squash — the sport
  11. cap — a lid
  12. track — to keep track
  13. kick — in football
  14. snap — to click
  15. prune — to trim
  16. tear — from crying
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. cap — a hat
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. tear — to rip
  21. cap — of ice
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. prune — to trim
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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