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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: fork · hand · rush · squash · tear · wind · object · spell

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. tear — to rip
  3. fork — in a road
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. spell — a short time
  6. tear — from crying
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — an aim
  9. object — a thing
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — to crush
  12. hand — help
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. spell — letters
  16. rush — hurry
  17. wind — moving air
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. spell — magic
  20. tear — from crying
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. squash — the sport
  23. hand — in cards
  24. fork — a garden tool

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