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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the sport
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. content — the amount
  9. band — a ring
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. land — a country
  14. wax — to grow
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. content — happy
  17. land — ground
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. lie — to recline
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. land — to come down
  23. band — a music group
  24. bowl — a football final

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