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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. swing — in golf
  5. ball — a dance
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — an amount
  8. kid — to tease
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. fall — the season
  13. swing — to play on
  14. mine — for digging
  15. deal — to handle
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. ball — a great time
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. kid — child
  20. swing — music
  21. squash — to crush
  22. degree — from a university
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. squash — the sport

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