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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: swing · squash · tear · hide · bound · date · pop · pitcher

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. pop — music
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. tear — from crying
  6. swing — in golf
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bound — certain
  9. date — the fruit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. swing — to play on
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bound — obliged
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — soda
  17. swing — music
  18. tear — from crying
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. squash — the sport
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bound — tied together
  24. hide — to keep secret

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