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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. wound — an injury
  3. squash — to crush
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. drill — the tool
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. net — for catching
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. net — after costs
  16. squash — the sport
  17. root — of a word
  18. net — in sport
  19. root — of a plant
  20. snap — to click
  21. root — the cause
  22. stand — to bear
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — a practice

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