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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — a division
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. squash — the sport
  8. mug — a cup
  9. drill — army training
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — a practice
  13. squash — to crush
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mug — to rob
  17. cold — not warm
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. row — a line
  22. snap — to click
  23. row — to paddle
  24. mug — a face

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