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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 116 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rest — what's left
  5. squash — to crush
  6. rest — a break
  7. vault — a safe
  8. cell — a phone
  9. squash — the sport
  10. snap — to click
  11. present — a gift
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. cell — in biology
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wound — an injury
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. present — there
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. wound — an injury
  24. present — the time now

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