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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 120 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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. vault — a safe
  4. season — in sport
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. shower — rain
  7. kid — child
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. branch — a division
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. season — of the year
  12. squash — to crush
  13. mine — for digging
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. kid — to tease
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. shower — to wash

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