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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 120 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. chest — a box
  4. sharp — clever
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. squash — to crush
  7. kid — to tease
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. chest — of your body
  11. season — in sport
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. kid — child
  16. rash — hasty
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. season — of the year
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. squash — the sport
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. squash — the vegetable

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