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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: content · march · squash · calf · tear · lash · drill · fall

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fall — to drop
  4. drill — army training
  5. fall — to drop
  6. tear — from crying
  7. march — the month
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. fall — the season
  12. march — music
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — a practice
  15. tear — to rip
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. tear — from crying
  18. march — the month
  19. content — the amount
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. squash — the sport
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. content — happy
  24. lash — an eyelash

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