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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. bank — of a river
  9. court — of law
  10. bank — for money
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. drill — army training
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. squash — the sport
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. drill — a practice
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. bank — for money
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. court — of a king
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. court — for sport
  23. squash — to crush
  24. trunk — of a car

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