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

Word bank: coach · kick · squash · tear · chip · swing

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. tear — from crying
  5. squash — the sport
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. tear — from crying
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. squash — to crush
  11. chip — to eat
  12. swing — to play on
  13. kick — in football
  14. chip — for betting
  15. tear — to rip
  16. swing — in golf
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. swing — music

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