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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. squash — to crush
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. pitch — completely
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. squash — the sport
  10. track — a song
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. track — to keep track
  13. ball — a dance
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. hand — help
  17. wind — moving air
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. track — a path
  20. ball — a great time
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. hand — in cards

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