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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: saw · game · staff · squash · toast · stick · rule · bat

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. bat — the animal
  4. game — wild animals
  5. staff — a stick
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. staff — employees
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. toast — bread
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. rule — government
  15. squash — the sport
  16. game — a match
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. squash — to crush
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. rule — a law
  22. staff — employees
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. game — a kind of play

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