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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. key — the most important part
  3. object — to protest
  4. key — in music
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. key — for a lock
  8. fall — to drop
  9. current — of water
  10. current — happening now
  11. fall — the season
  12. object — a thing
  13. row — a line
  14. fall — to drop
  15. object — an aim
  16. row — to paddle
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. squash — the sport
  19. perch — the fish
  20. swing — music
  21. current — electric
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — in golf

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