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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. snap — to click
  3. spring — a coil
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. spring — of water
  8. face — part of the head
  9. track — to keep track
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. face — to confront
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. squash — to crush
  14. track — a song
  15. squash — the sport
  16. rock — music
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. face — to point toward
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. track — a path
  21. spring — the season
  22. rock — a stone
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. rock — to move gently

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