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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. squash — to crush
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. pop — to visit
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. squash — the sport
  11. track — a path
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bore — to drill
  14. cold — not warm
  15. pop — soda
  16. bore — to tire
  17. plane — a tool
  18. pop — music
  19. track — a song
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — a series
  22. track — to keep track
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bear — the animal

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