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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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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: march · present · spell · race · deal · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. squash — the sport
  5. spell — a short time
  6. march — music
  7. squash — to crush
  8. march — the month
  9. deal — to handle
  10. present — the time now
  11. spell — letters
  12. race — humankind
  13. spell — magic
  14. present — there
  15. present — a gift
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. march — the month

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