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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: drill · rash · root · fall · content · squash · rush · ball

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. squash — the sport
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. content — the amount
  5. ball — a dance
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. fall — the season
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. root — the cause
  11. fall — to drop
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. fall — to drop
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. rash — a series
  17. rush — hurry
  18. drill — the tool
  19. squash — to crush
  20. content — happy
  21. root — of a plant
  22. drill — a practice
  23. root — of a word
  24. drill — army training

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