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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. mate — to breed
  3. kid — child
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. mate — a friend
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. squash — to crush
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. scale — in music
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. band — a ring
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. rock — music
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. squash — the sport
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. bat — the animal
  21. kid — to tease
  22. scale — size or range
  23. band — a music group
  24. mate — a partner

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