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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · swing · bear · drill · squash · kick

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bear — the animal
  4. squash — the sport
  5. degree — an amount
  6. swing — music
  7. bear — the animal
  8. drill — the tool
  9. degree — from a university
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. degree — temperature
  12. swing — in golf
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. swing — to play on
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — a practice
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — in football

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