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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bore · swing · ball · squash · bark · cabinet · field · arm

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bore — to drill
  5. squash — the sport
  6. ball — a dance
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. field — a subject
  12. ball — a great time
  13. swing — in golf
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — to play on
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bore — to tire
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. field — for sport
  23. bark — to shout
  24. field — farmland

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