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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. season — in sport
  3. wind — moving air
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bore — to tire
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. date — the fruit
  13. squash — the sport
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. season — of the year
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bass — low music
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. bass — the fish
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. drill — a practice
  24. vault — a safe

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