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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. root — of a word
  8. bark — to shout
  9. squash — the sport
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. root — the cause
  12. last — to go on
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a line of people
  16. root — of a plant
  17. rush — hurry
  18. last — final
  19. last — finally
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. capital — a city
  22. squash — to crush
  23. capital — money
  24. file — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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